


Absence and the Heart

by AnnaOnTheMoon



Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-04
Updated: 2017-11-04
Packaged: 2019-01-29 10:38:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 22,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12629184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnaOnTheMoon/pseuds/AnnaOnTheMoon
Summary: Written at the request of PharmJaim.  Beverly gets assigned a special assignment from Starfleet that takes her away from the Enterprise for one year.  How do Beverly and Jean-Luc cope?  What will happen with Wesley? Takes place during Season 2.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Admiral Skussi is made up, Pa'nar Syndrome is not.

“Of course I understand Admiral Skussi, but you have to understand what you are asking me to do. You are asking me to send my Chief Medical Officer  - a vital part of my senior staff -  off of my ship to assist in researching a cure for Pa’nar Syndrome.  I simply cannot be without my CMO for that long. “ 

“You won’t be without a CMO, Captain.  We will assign someone to your ship in the interim.”

“Interim?  How long do you expect her to be away for?”

“One year.”

Jean-Luc sputtered. “One year?!  You expect me to send Beverly – Doctor Crusher, away for an entire year?  What about her son? Where will Wesley go?”

“I’ve checked Doctor Crusher’s files. Her grandmother lives on Caldos, I believe.  Wesley can live with her for the year.  I also understand that his father has relatives on Earth.”

“And interrupt his studies?  Admiral, Acting Ensign Crusher is excelling under the tutelage of my staff and gaining valuable experience which will help him at the Academy and beyond.  I simply cannot send him away.”

“Well, then I suppose you’ll have to take responsibility for him.”

“Me?  But....I don’t know what to do with children.”

“You are....shall we say...familiar with Doctor Crusher though, aren’t you?”

“Of course I am. She is my Chief Medical Officer. Her husband was my second officer on the _Stargazer_.  Her son, Wesley, is like a son to me.  On a more personal note, Beverly is...very important to me.”  Jean-Luc lamely finished.  The Vulcan likely did not care to know the intricacies of his relationship with Beverly Crusher.  In fact, it was probably for the best if the Admiralty never found out just how close the _Enterprise_ Captain and the CMO were. 

Admiral Skussi steepled his fingers. “We understand you have some reservations about sending Doctor Crusher to Vulcan, but we need her.  We will make it an order if we must.”

“No.  I’ll talk to her.  How much time do I have?”

“Two weeks. You will rendezvous with the _Repulse_ where you will receive your interim CMO.  Captain, no one must know the reason for Doctor Crusher leaving your ship.  As far as anyone is concerned, she will be working for Starfleet Medical on Earth, not Vulcan.  You understand this is a matter of security for Vulcan.”

“Of course, Admiral.  Who is permitted to know?”

“Doctor Crusher and yourself.  No one else.”

###

“Picard to Sickbay.”

“Ogawa here.”

“Nurse Ogawa, is Doctor Crusher available?”

“Sir, she’s in surgery.  Do you need me to interrupt her?”

“No, but please tell her to report to my Ready Room at her earliest convenience.”

“Aye, Sir.”

Jean-Luc rested his elbows on his desk and held his head in his hands.  How was he going to make it through a whole year without Beverly?  Their relationship had admittedly started out on the wrong foot and was a little bit rocky, but they were finally moving in a good direction...and now...would she want to wait a year to be with him?  Would it be appropriate for him to ask?  He just didn’t know.  His thoughts turned to Wesley.  Wesley was going to have to be made to think that Beverly was going to be on Earth....Jean-Luc knew Wesley and knew Wesley would wind up asking to remain on board the _Enterprise_ , but he hated having to lie to the boy.  And he supposed he was going to have to step up officially into the role as the boy’s guardian....he didn’t know what to do with children, let alone teenagers.  He got up and went to the replicator and ordered a cup of tea while he contemplated all of the changes.  He also really didn’t want a new CMO.  He would have preferred if Doctor Selar or Hill had stepped up into Beverly’s place temporarily...having a new CMO almost made it seem permanent.  The door chimed, rousing him from his thoughts.

“Come.”

Beverly entered the room and gave Jean-Luc a soft smile.  “You asked to see me, Jean-Luc?” 

Jean-Luc got up from behind the desk and held Beverly’s hands in his own as he led her over to the couch.  He gave her a kiss on the cheek before asking , “Would you like a cup of tea?”

Beverly smiled. “Yes, please. That would be lovely.”  Jean-Luc busied himself at the replicator while Beverly shrugged off her lab coat.  She didn’t know if this was for business or pleasure, but she hoped it would be a little of both.  “What did you need to see me for?” 

Jean-Luc sat down next to Beverly and took her hand in his once more.  “Beverly....I have....well, you have...an assignment.”

“An assignment?”

“Yes.  The Vulcans are becoming increasingly concerned over the number of people coming down with Pa’nar and they want you to come to Vulcan to help work on a cure or a vaccine against it.”

Beverly’s mouth hung open.  “But that could take months...years....”

“I....I know.  They, ah,  they want you for a year.” 

“But my job....my life....my son....you....are here....I can’t just leave you....”

Jean-Luc patted her hand. “I know.  I don’t want you to go either, but I was told we can make this voluntary, or they will order you.”

“Oh.”  She traced her fingers on the palm of Jean-Luc’s hand. “And us?”

Jean-Luc leaned over and placed a soft kiss on her lips.  “We can still be an us.  Beverly, I’ve waited so long, one more year won’t matter.” 

“Will Wesley come with me?”

“No.  Your mission will be top secret. Not even Wes can know.  He can either go to Caldos, stay with Jack’s parents on earth,”  Beverly made a face, “or he can stay here.  I can....I can be his guardian.”

“Jean-Luc, you would do that for me?”

“Beverly, my love, I would do _anything_ for you.”

“Mmm. Can we make-out on the couch?”

“Computer: seal door.”

Their kissing was interrupted by the incessant ringing of the door chime.  Jean-Luc detangled his hands from Beverly’s hair “Computer: Who is at the door?”

“Commander William T Riker.”  He groaned.  “Computer: Unseal door.” 

Will came striding into the room.  Jean-Luc hurriedly stood up and straightened his tunic.

“Number One, what is it? The Doctor and I are in a very important meeting.” 

Will took in Beverly’s swollen lip and dishevelled hair and grinned.  “Sir, I have Admiral Skussi for you.”

“Patch it through. Thank you, Number One.”  Will motioned for Beverly to leave the room with him and Jean-Luc held out his hand “Beverly, please stay.  I have a feeling this will concern you, too.”

###

Wesley had moved into the second bedroom in the Captain’s quarters “temporarily”,  so it made perfect sense for Beverly to stay there too.  It had nothing to do with the burgeoning relationship between her and Jean-Luc. 

Beverly slept in Jean-Luc’s bed every night, shared breakfasts and dinners with him, sat drinking wine on the sofa in quiet conversation in the evenings with him...and yet, they still hadn’t made love.  Both were afraid to go down that path, especially so close to Beverly needing to leave.  Beverly was afraid that if she crossed that hurdle she wouldn’t be willing to accept the assignment and she knew she didn’t want to be ordered to leave.  Jean-Luc was worried once he had her in his arms he wouldn’t be able to let her go. 

They finally made love on Beverly’s second to last night on the _Enterprise._  Their lovemaking was tender, passionate, and bittersweet.  At one point either Beverly or Jean-Luc or both of them were shedding tears of happiness and sorrow all rolled up into one.  When Beverly climaxed she looked into the eyes of her best friend and now lover and uttered the three words Jean-Luc had been waiting to hear for over fifteen years – “I love you.”

They made love all night long, each yearning to memorise every detail of their lover’s body.  Each gentle caress and feverous stroke creating memories that would have to last for a year.  Jean-Luc kissed every inch of Beverly’s body – the swell of her breast, the curve of her hip, the soft sensitive spot behind her knee.  He couldn’t get enough of her and he needed her to know how much he loved her and had loved her for seventeen years. Ever since he first laid eyes on a fierce red-headed medical student named Beverly Howard, he knew that he was hers. 

Beverly had tried to ignore her feelings for Jean-Luc for more years than she cared to remember.  There was a drunken kiss over New Year’s after she and Jack had been married that sent tingles all the way down to her toes, his comforting hand on her back the day of Jack’s funeral,  her arms wrapped around him when he returned to her, a broken man with a broken ship, barely six months later, and then there was his hand wrapped tightly around hers in the Emergency Room waiting area when Wesley had broken his leg when he was nine....all those moments led to this and it felt so right.  Beverly began to cry again at the injustice of finally realising she needed to be with Jean-Luc right as she needed to leave. 

Jean-Luc reached up and brushed her tears away with his thumb. “Shh, shh, my love.  Everything will be fine.  We’ll talk as often as we can. I promise. ” He held her in his arms and continued to place soft kisses on her hair and face. 

“Oh, Jean-Luc.  I’m sorry....I should have...we should have...if we had only...”  he silenced her with a kiss.

“No. What only matters is now.  The past is past.”

###

The following evening, a going away party was held for Beverly in Ten Forward.  Jean-Luc would have much rather been saying his private goodbyes to the woman who possessed his heart, but for the sake of crew morale and since Beverly was well-liked by nearly everyone on board, he escorted her to her party and glowered anytime another male tried to gain her attention. 

Will sidled up to Deanna. “What’s going on with the Captain? He seemed to want to bite my head off when I asked Beverly to dance earlier.”

Deanna smiled.  “Will,  you know the two of them have a strong relationship with each other.  I think he just wants to spend as much time as he can with her before she leaves.”

“I’m going to miss her too, you know.”

“We all will, but I think the Captain might miss her more than any of us.”

Will raised his eyebrows at his former lover.  “Are you saying....?”

“I’m not saying anything, Will Riker.”  Deanna stood  up to walk away, but Will caught her around the waist.

“Dance with me?”

“Will, do you really think that’s a good idea?”

“Not really...but will you?”

“Yes, but just one song!” Will led Deanna out onto the dance floor, and he soon forgot about his curiosity over the relationship between his commanding officer and the chief medical officer.

Beverly swayed in Jean-Luc’s arms, resting her cheek on his shoulder.  “This is lovely....” she murmured into his neck.

Jean-Luc tilted his head to rest it on top of Beverly’s.  “Indeed.  I enjoy having you in my arms...but I would much prefer it if we were alone.”

“Oh?”

He moved his hand briefly from her waist to lift her chin so he could look into her eyes. He spoke softly so only she could hear him. “Beverly, my love,  I just want to have you in my arms on our last night together.” 

“I am in your arms.”

“Hmm. And wearing entirely too much clothing for my liking.” His hand snaked back to grasp her around the waist.

Beverly swatted at his arm. “Capain!”

“It would be entirely inappropriate if I kissed you here, and yet, I find myself having the urge to do so.”

Beverly’s eyes sparkled with mischief.  “I think you should do it.” She brought one hand up to caress his cheek and Jean-Luc leaned into the touch.

“It wouldn’t be proper.  The Captain kissing the CMO?”

“Hmm. Good thing I’m not your CMO anymore....”

“Of course you are.  You’ll be back.  Don’t be silly. This Pulaski woman will only be filling in.”

“Just as long as she doesn’t fill in in other places too.” 

Jean-Luc looked at her with mock shock.  “Like that would happen.”

Beverly placed  her hands on either side of Jean-Luc’s face and drew his face closer to hers.  She captured his lips in a passionate kiss and his hand on her shoulder went to tangle in her hair while the hand on her waist pulled her in closer.  When Beverly pulled away, she grinned. “I guess the CMO can kiss her Captain....”

From across the room, Will nearly choked on his drink as he saw the Captain locked in an embrace with Beverly.  It looked pretty serious to him and he made a note to ask Wesley about it.  Speaking of the young Ensign, where was he?

Wesley was in Engineering, avoiding the party.  If he didn’t go, then perhaps he could pretend his mother wasn’t leaving and he wouldn’t be leaving soon.  Sure, Captain Picard said he could stay with him temporarily, but he was certain there was no way the Captain would agree to him staying on board without his mother...and could he?  He didn’t want to leave the _Enterprise._   He enjoyed his job -  probably one of the youngest Ensigns in the history of the Federation – and if he left, he would no longer be “Acting Ensign Crusher”...he would just be “Wesley Crusher”. 

He thought about Captain Picard again. Wesley had always thought of the Captain as a father figure to him, when he was little he used to call him “Uncle Johnny”.  Funny, how he never thought about calling the Captain anything other than the Captain since he and his mother had come aboard last year.  He wondered if he stayed under the Captain’s guardianship for the year if he would feel comfortable calling him anything other than Captain.  His comm badge chirped, bringing him out of his thoughts.

“Riker to Ensign Crusher.”

“Crusher here.”

“Wesley, why aren’t you at the party for your mother?”

“Commander....I, ah.....didn’t feel like celebrating.”

“I understand, but Wesley, you really should put in an appearance.”

“Yes, Sir. I’ll be on my way.  Crusher out.”  Wesley sighed. _Guess I had better make an appearance._

When Wesley entered Ten Forward, he glanced around before making his way over to Will, Deanna, Geordi, and Data.  They were all staring at a couple dancing, and Wesley did a double take when he realised the couple was his mother and his Captain.

“Ah, young Wesley. Good of you to join us.  Perhaps you can explain....that?” Will motioned towards the dancing couple.

“No, Sir. I mean,  Mom and the Captain have always been close.  They do attend all those concerts and diplomatic functions together.”

“Are they together?”

“I don’t know.  I guess so.  We’ve been staying in the Captain’s quarters since Mom accepted her new post.  I don’t think either of them have been sleeping on the sofa....”

“You haven’t heard....noises?” 

Deanna smacked Will on the chest. “William T. Riker, that is a highly inappropriate question to be asking Wesley!”

“What?  I’m just fulfilling my duties as First Officer and making sure everything is alright with our Captain.  So, Wes, did you?”

“Uhh.....no.....but I’ve been on gamma shift, so....”

“A-ha!” The couple in question walked over to the group. 

“Talking about anything interesting, Number One?”  Will noticed the Captain had his arm wrapped loosely around Beverly’s waist.  He raised his eyebrows.

“Ah, no, Sir. Just talking about how much _some_ of us will miss Doctor Crusher....I think some of us will miss her more than others...”

“No doubt.  Now, if you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll retire for the evening.”

“I ah, think I’ll join you.  That is...I think I’ll retire for the evening. Early morning tomorrow and all....” Beverly trailed off and tried to hide the blush that crept up her face. 

“Goodnight Captain, Doctor.  Doctor, Good luck. I will miss you.” Beverly surprised Data by grabbing him in a hug.  “I’ll miss you too, Data.  You’ll look after Wesley for me?”

“We all will,” said Will as he leaned down to kiss Beverly’s cheek. He noticed the Captain gave him a slight glare.  “Will we see you in the morning before you leave?”

Beverly nodded and exchanged a look with the Captain.  “The Captain and I thought we might have one last staff breakfast together before I leave.  Seven?  In the Captain’s quarters?”

“We’ll be there.  Goodnight, Doctor.”

“Good night Will. Night Deanna, Geordi. Wesley....don’t stay out too long.”

“Yes, Mom.”

###

Jean-Luc and Beverly were back in his quarters, swaying to soft music.  “You know, it’s a good thing I am Captain, otherwise I would have to answer some uncomfortable questions about tonight.”

“Oh?”

Jean-Luc nuzzled her neck.  “The dancing....the kissing.....holding your hand? I don’t do these things publicly...I wouldn’t do these things publicly with anyone else but you.”

“Jean-Luc?”

“Hmm?”

“Make love to me tonight.  I want one more night with you....”


	2. Chapter 2

_To:  Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain USS Enterprise_

_From: Crusher, Beverly, Chief Medical Officer USS Enterprise_

_Captain Picard,_

_Please accept this as official notification of my request for a year of absence from the ship as your Chief Medical Officer to pursue a research project with Starfleet Medical.  The terms of the grant are for one year, and so I hope I can resume my position at the conclusion of this project._

_Commander Beverly Crusher, MD._

###

_To: Crusher, Beverly, Chief Medical Officer USS Enterprise_

_From: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain USS Enterprise_

_Commander Crusher,_

_I hereby approve your temporary reassignment to Starfleet Medical and look forward to having you on board again as my Chief Medical Officer.  You have been a great asset to this crew and ship, and you will be missed._

_Captain Jean-Luc Picard_

###

_To:  Skussi, Admiral_

_From: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain USS Enterprise_

_Admiral Skussi,_

_Owing to my Chief Medical Officer accepting a research project with Starfleet Medical, I am in need of a temporary CMO.  Please advise._

_Captain Jean-Luc Picard._

_###_

_To: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain USS Enterprise_

_From: Skussi, Admiral_

_Captain Picard,_

_I have taken the liberty of assigning Doctor Katherine Pulaski to your ship.  She will make a fine Chief Medical Officer.  If you require any additional assistance, do not hesitate to contact my office._

_Sincerely,_

_Admiral Skussi_

###

Jean-Luc sighed.  The deeds were now done and all that was left was for him to say good-bye and send Beverly over to the _Repulse_ and have his new interim CMO transferred over. Of course, he wouldn’t be able to call Doctor Pulaski interim to her face, but she knew that her position was only temporary and under great duress as Jean-Luc had not wanted to replace Beverly at all.  He heard the shower turn off and grinned.  Beverly would just now be exiting the shower and drying herself off.  He checked the clock.  0600.  The rest of the senior staff wasn’t due until 0700.  They had plenty of time....

The doorchime rang at exactly 0700.  “Come,” Jean-Luc called as he finished adjusting his uniform.  Will and Deanna were the first to arrive. 

“Captain, where’s Beverly?”

“She’s in the bedroom making sure she has everything.”

“Ah, mind if I..?”

“Go right ahead, counsellor.”

Deanna paused in the doorway to the Captain’s bedroom.  From the rumpled sheets on both sides of the bed, Deanna was sure they had shared the bed.  She reached out with her senses and touched her friends mind.  _Content, but also....sad.  Apprehensive....and....in love?  Oh, Beverly...._ Out loud, Deanna said “knock, knock!”

Beverly whirled around “Oh, Deanna! I’m sorry I didn’t see you.”  She motioned to the clutter around the room. “Just trying to pack everything up.  It’s a good thing I’m not taking much.”

“Hmm.  And where will your belongings left on board be stored? I know we won’t be leaving your quarters unoccupied.”

“Oh, well....you know....storage....here....oh gee, would you look at the time, I bet the others are arriving soon.”

“Beverly, there’s something you wish to tell me?”

“No....I mean, yes, but..no...”

“Would it help if I told you I was sensing the same feelings from both you and the Captain?  It’s obvious neither of you are looking forward to you being away, which begs the question...why did you accept this assignment.”

“Oh, Deanna. There are some things I can’t tell you.  But trust me when I say that if there had been a way for me to remain on board for the next year, I would.”

“And you and the Captain?”

“I will miss him more than anyone.  Well, possibly not more than Wesley.”

“I see. Well, I hope you will write to me while you are away.  I’m not sure how well I will like Doctor Pulaski....she isn’t you.”

“I know.  And I will. Now, let’s join the others for Breakfast.”

Everyone was seating around the table, including Wesley who had just returned to their quarters after a night shift.  He wanted to say goodbye to his mother before he headed to bed, and he was nervous for what it would be like living with the Captain without his mother...even temporarily.  Beverly took her seat between Jean-Luc and Wesley and reached out her hands to grasp theirs. She gave Wesley a quick squeeze before letting go, but she was less willing to let go of Jean-Luc’s.  The couple rested their clasped hands on the table, daring their friends to ask.  Naturally, it was Data who asked what everyone else was thinking.

“Captain, Doctor.  I cannot help but notice you have your hands clasped.  Is this for a specific reason?”

Jean-Luc tried to snatch his hand away, but Beverly held it fast. Deanna chuckled and thought she could rescue her friends.

“Data, when two people hold hands, it is usually because they wish to show affection for one another.”

“Oh.”  Data held out his hand and reached for Geordi’s hand. 

Geordi snatched his hand back and exclaimed “Data!”

“But Geordi,  I wish to show you affection. You are my friend.”

“Yeah, but Data...that’s not how it works.  You hold hands with....well,  I would hold hands with a woman because I like to date women.  Counsellor Troi would hold hands with a man, because she likes to date men. Do you understand?”

“So...the Captain....and Doctor Crusher like to...date each other?”  Both Beverly and Jean-Luc blushed.  “Doctor, I  am sensing a rise in yours and the Captain’s facial temperatures. Are you both alright?”

“I do not think we should pry into the personal life of our Captain and commanding officer.” Worf interjected.

“Worf, it’s alright. Yes, Data we’re fine.  The Captain and I are...” Beverly exchanged a look with Jean-Luc.  He nodded and she gave his hand a squeeze . “Jean-Luc and I love each other very much...” 

Jean-Luc picked up the explanation. “And we would appreciate your discretion in not sharing this information with anyone  yet.”  Jean-Luc turned to Wesley.  “Wesley, I’m sorry we didn’t tell you sooner.”

Wesley waved his hand “Nah, I sort of assumed.”

“I...see.”

“Sir, it was kinda obvious. “ Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows. “To me, I mean. Sir.  Captain.  Uncle Johnny?”  Wesley said Uncle Johnny in a small voice which made Jean-Luc and everyone else at the table laugh.  Will clapped Wesley on the back.

“Uncle Johnny, eh?”

“Wesley called me Uncle Johnny when he was younger....I don’t think you have called me that since you were nine and you broke your leg.”

“Yeah, I remember I didn’t want Mom to know, so I made the school call you.  I told them my mom was away and they had to call my uncle.” 

Beverly chortled.  “So that’s why you had to tell me, Jean-Luc! I had wondered why you knew before me.” 

Will looked between his Captain, his friend, and her son.  “Captain, I was unaware you knew the Crusher’s for so long. Wesley told me you brought back his father, but I hadn’t realised...”

“Jack had been my second officer and my best friend.  We all - Jack, Walker, Beverly, and I – knew each other for years. Jack and Walker called me Johnny....and somehow decided it was easier than teaching Wesley how to say my proper  name.”

Wesley blushed. “Sorry, Sir.”

“It’s alright, son. I suppose if you will be living with me you’ll need to call me something other than Captain.  If you’d like, you can still call me Uncle.”

“Uncle Jean?”  Beverly teased.

“Hmm.” Jean-Luc pursed his lips.  Beverly leaned over and gave him a kiss. 

“What? Now that they know...no reason to hide it. I leave in two hours, anyway.”

“You’re right, dear.” Will’s eyebrows rose once again. “Not a word, Number One. Not a single word.”

Wesley let out a yawn. “Sorry, Mom....Uncle Jean-Luc....I think I had better get some sleep.  Mom....I’ll miss you.”  Beverly rose to pull her son into a fierce hug.

“I’ll miss you too. Go, get some sleep.  I’ll call you from...well, I’ll call you when I reach my destination.”

Wesley shuffled off to his room and the door softly hissed shut.  Deanna stood up.  “Well, I guess I should be going...Beverly, good luck. Please stay in touch?”  Beverly nodded and hugged her best friend.

“Don’t make me cry, Dee.”

“I’ll...I’ll try.” Tears glistened in the corner of Deanna’s eyes.  Will came over and scooped Beverly up in a bear hug. 

“You take care of yourself, I’ll look after grumpy over there.”  Jean-Luc pretended to be outraged.

“Commander Riker, that was uncalled for! Captain, do you wish to discipline him?”

“No, Worf.  But thank you.  At least he called me grumpy to my face.”

“Yes, Sir. I will be in Shuttle Bay Two when you are ready, Doctor.”  To Worf’s surprise, Beverly pulled him into a hug. 

“I’ll miss you, Worf.” Worf merely grunted before leaving the Captain’s quarters.

Beverly quickly hugged Data and Geordi before they all left to head to their duty stations.  Of course, Jean-Luc should be reporting for duty too, but Will certainly wasn’t going to point that out to the couple.  Will glanced back as he exited the Captain’s quarters and saw Beverly and Jean-Luc once again locked in an embrace.  This year was going to be hard for them. 

###

Worf had relieved the Ensign stationed in Shuttlebay Two. He figured this would allow for the Captain and Doctor Crusher to have a little more time alone and not have to worry about being seen.  The shuttle from the _Repulse_ would come in with the temporary CMO, and then Beverly and her possessions would be loaded onto the shuttle. Ensign Matthews shrugged and headed to Ten Forward. Might as well see if any of his friends were around. 

Beverly and Jean-Luc came into the shuttlebay. His hand was on her back, but that was the only form of affection they had been willing to show in the corridors.  He looked around and nodded at Worf before gathering Beverly into his arms.  They took no notice of the noise in the shuttlebay as the shuttle was expertly piloted into the room and set down gently.  Worf went to greet the woman who exited.

“Doctor Pulaski? “ The woman nodded. “Welcome to the _Enterprise_. I am Lieutenant Worf, Chief of Security.  I will have your belongings beamed to your quarters. Do you wish for an escort to show you around?”

“No thank you, Mister...Wharf, was it?”

“Worf, Sir.”

“Sorry, Mister Worf.  I daresay I can find my own way around the ship.”

“Of course, Sir.”

Doctor Pulaski was surprised Captain Picard had not come to greet her, but never mind.  She took a passing glance at the couple embracing in the corner on her way out of the shuttlebay. _Must be the former CMO saying goodbye to her....husband?  Partner?  I thought she was widowed?  No matter. It’s none of my concern._

Worf gently cleared his throat.  “Sir. Doctor.  I’m sorry....the shuttle has arrived.”  They broke apart suddenly, a blush evident on Beverly’s face.

“Thank you, Mister Worf.  You are dismissed. I can handle it from here.”

“Of course, Sir.  Doctor, I wish you luck.”

“Thank you, Worf.”

Once Worf left, Jean-Luc drew Beverly back into his arms again.

“Jean-Luc, the shuttle pilot?”

“Oh, they’re probably busy making preparations to leave again.  But let me get Chief O’Brian to transfer your belongings.  Picard to O’Brian.”

“O’Brian here, Sir.”

“Doctor Pulaski has arrived. Her belongings are in the shuttlecraft in shuttlebay two. Please beam her belongings from the shuttle to her quarters and then please beam Doctor Crushers belongings into the shuttle.”

“Aye, Sir. O’Brian out.”

Jean-Luc kissed Beverly passionately. “Beverly...I’m going to miss you so much.”

“Jean-Luc, please don’t make me cry.” 

“Only if you don’t make me cry.”  Jean-Luc pulled a small box out of seemingly nowhere and handed it to Beverly. “A gift.  I wanted you to have something....so you will think of me.”

Beverly lifted up the lid of the box to reveal a small silver heart on a chain.  In the point of the heart sat a very small green-grey coloured stone.  “Jean-Luc....it’s beautiful.  Would you...put it on me?”

“Of course.”  Jean-Luc moved behind her and brushed her hair away from her neck.  He gently kissed her neck as he clasped the necklace in place.  Beverly turned around and kissed him once more.  “Thank you.”  Jean-Luc leaned down and pressed a kiss to the pendant before Beverly tucked it into her top.  “I only wish I had something to give you right now....”

“Don’t worry about it, my love.”  Jean-Luc looked over at the shuttle.  “I think your pilot is ready.”

“Oh, I don’t want to say goodbye to you, Jean-Luc.” A tear rolled down her face.  Jean-Luc brushed it away. 

“It won’t be for long.  We’ll see each other soon...and you’ll...call me tonight?”  Beverly nodded.  Jean-Luc pressed one more kiss to Beverly’s forehead.  “Goodbye, my love.”

“Goodbye, Jean-Luc.  I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

###

Jean-Luc stormed his way onto the bridge and into his Ready Room, calling behind him “Number One, you have the Bridge.”  If he wasn’t on duty, he would have considered asking Guianan for a small dram of Whisky to dull the pain, but for now he would have to take comfort in a cup of tea.  He stopped, puzzled at the sight of a small box resting on his desk.  He tentatively approached it and recognized Beverly’s handwriting. _So that’s what she meant when she said she wished she had something to give me now._ He slid open the box. Nestled on the cotton was a single command pip.  _Well, that’s a bit odd.  Why would Beverly give me a new command pip?_ He turned the pip over in his hand.  Etched onto the backing was a single letter.  **B**.  _Ah, B for Beverly._ Beverly knew Jean-Luc wasn’t about to start wearing any kind of jewellery but she had wanted to give him something that would make him think of her.  So she had opted to have a replacement pip replicated with her initial on the back.  Jean-Luc smiled as he pulled off one of his pips and replaced it with Beverly’s. 

It was going to be a long year.... 

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takes place during S2E1

###

Beverly woke groggily to the sound of her communications badge on board the _Repulse._ “Crusher here?”

“Commander Crusher, you have an incoming call from the _Enterprise.”_ Beverly smiled. _Missing me already?_

“Put it through to my quarters please.”  Beverly stretched and grabbed for her dressing gown before heading over to the console on the desk.  To her surprise, she was greeted not by Jean-Luc, but by Deanna.

“Deanna?  Is everything alright? Is Jean-Luc...?”

“I’m sure the captain is fine.  But Beverly, I need you.”  Beverly studied her best friend. Her eyes were wide and her hair was wild. She must have just woken up as well.

“Dee...what’s wrong?”

“Bev....I’m pregnant.”  Silence hung between the two friends. 

“Pregnant?  Congratulations, Dee! When did you and Will...?”

“It’s not Will’s.”  Beverly raised her eyebrows.  “It’s not anyone’s!  I felt....a presence enter my quarters while I was sleeping and it..I think it impregnated me.  Can’t you turn around and come back? I don’t know what to do!” 

Beverly stares at her friend with her mouth agape.  _Was Deanna...raped by an alien light form?_ Out loud she said “I’m sure Doctor Pulaski can help you.  Based on her records, she is competent...”

“But she’s not _you_. I don’t even understand why you aren’t here right now.  We’re transferring this virus and surely you should be here for this and not.... _her_ ” 

Beverly had never heard Deanna act so rude before.  She wondered just what else this alien had done to her. “I’m sorry, Dee.  I had to take this opportunity.  If it will make you feel better, have Pulaski call me and I’ll look over your files.  And, um..Congratulations?” _I think_? 

“Thanks Beverly. I’ll go see Doctor Pulaski now.  Troi out.”

Beverly sat back in her chair after the screen went black. Should she call Jean-Luc to let him know and discuss her feelings with him?  Or was this now none of her business since she technically was no longer CMO for the _Enterprise?_   Beverly yawned.  _I’ll call Jean-Luc later after I get some more sleep...and hopefully this is all just a false alarm for Deanna or she realises that what has happened to her was rape. And if she was pregnant...she wasn’t far enough along to be having so many emotional changes as she seemed to be...even for being half Betazoid._

Jean-Luc called Beverly before she had a chance to speak with him. 

“Jean-Luc, what a pleasant surprise...though I suspect you are calling to talk to me about Deanna?”

“You know?”

“Deanna called me this morning before she went to see the new CMO.  So...how is she? What’s she like?”

“Who?”

“Pulaski.”

“Oh. Um...not you.”

Beverly smiled. “And Deanna?”

“Pregnant. Definitely pregnant.  And ah...it’s accelerating.  Doctor Pulaski can’t figure out why, but Counsellor Troi currently appears to be twelve weeks pregnant, but impregnation was only last night.”  He ran his hand over his face.  “And she wants to keep the baby.”

“What?”  Jean-Luc nodded. “But...that...whatever it was...it _raped_ her.  Why would she want to keep the product of an alien rape?”

“I don’t know, Beverly.  I don’t know.  I wish....well, I wish you were here and not Doctor Pulaski.  I think you would have been able to talk some sense into her.  She won’t listen to me...or to Will...and Doctor Pulaski...well, she hasn’t used the word rape and I don’t think she took too kindly of Worf’s suggestion that the child should be terminated”

Beverly raised her eyebrows.  “And what do _you_ think, Jean-Luc?”

“I never got a chance to give my opinion before Counsellor Troi announced that she would be having the child.  But I must agree with Worf.  We don’t know what kind of entity impregnated the counsellor and I agree with you that this child is the product of rape...but Counsellor Troi is adamant she will have this child...and Doctor Pulaski thinks with the intense acceleration she will give birth in three days. 

Beverly, what  if this child turns out to cause harm to the ship?  How can I....what do I do then?  Do I kill the child?  Force Counsellor Troi to leave the ship? “

“Jean-Luc, you are the Captain, you’ll figure it out.”

“Hmm.”

“You will.  Perhaps this accelerated pregnancy will result in an accelerated development as well.  If  9...10 months gestation is only going to take three days...then perhaps it will age quickly to adulthood by the time it’s only six or seven years old.”

“ _years?!?”_

“Yes, years.”

“Ah, Beverly. I wish you were here.  I really do.” 

“I do too, Jean-Luc.” Beverly pulled her necklace out of her collar and played with the pendant.  “Oh, did you find my present?”

Jean-Luc fingered the pip on his collar. “I did.  Thank you. You know me so well.”

“I didn’t think you would wear a piece of jewellery.”

“No.  Perhaps a wedding ring...” Jean-Luc let his comment slip out by accident. “if I was married, I mean...to you...not to anyone else...I...oh, never mind.”

Beverly laughed. “You’re cute when you’re flustered.  I do know what you mean, and it means a lot to me that if we ever get married you would wear a ring.  I, ah, would too.”

“Well, then maybe we should....”

“No.”  Jean-Luc’s face fell.  “Jean-Luc, we’ll be separated for the next year, and we’ve only been together for two weeks!”

“Ten years.”

“Two weeks. We may have been dancing around each other for ten....”

“And I’ve loved you for over fifteen.”

“I know.  And Jean-Luc...I know that I probably _will_ agree to marry you....just not yet, ok?” 

“Well, if you’re sure.”

“I’m sure.  I love you, Jean-Luc.”

“I love you too.  I, ah, don’t mean to disappoint, but I probably need to check in with Counsellor Troi.”

“I understand, my love.  Please keep me updated about Deanna....and if the Doctor wants me to take a look at anything, I have a loooong trip ahead to V...my destination.” Beverly wasn’t sure if she was allowed to mention where she would be to Jean-Luc over open communications, and made a note to find out later.

“I’ll let her know.  Have you talked to Wesley yet?”

“No.  I thought I might try tonight if his Captain doesn’t work him too hard.”

“Would I? You know, its’ nice for him to call me Uncle again.  I did miss that.”

“You should tell him.”

“I will. I’ll call you tonight?”  Beverly nodded. “Goodbye my love.”  Beverly blew a kiss at her monitor.  “Goodbye, Jean-Luc.  Crusher out.”

Beverly sat back and contemplated if she should go ahead and contact Pulaski on her own...or if she should try speaking to Deanna again.  Ten months of gestation in only three days?  Deanna’s body would be in agony!  She decided to try Deanna first.  She tapped in her access codes to get into the _Enterprise_ ’s communications and she hit her first wall.  _Someone_ had deleted her codes.  She would have to speak with the switchboard, first.  Sighing, she waited for it to connect, then asked to be put through to the Captain.

“Is this a private matter?”

“No, just put me through to the bridge.”

“Yes, Commander.” Beverly rolled her eyes. Why did using commander get her more respect than doctor?  The screen flickered on and she saw the entire Bridge on her screen.  Jean-Luc looked a little surprised to see that the call was from Beverly, and Wesley just grinned and waved at his mother from his usual spot.

“Ah, Doctor Crusher.  To what do we owe the pleasure?”

“Jean-Luc, someone has taken away my comm codes for the _Enterprise._ I can only call the switchboard.  Please tell me, how am I supposed to speak with my son if I cannot call his _quarters_ directly?” Beverly put extra emphasis on the word quarters, since she knew very well Wesley would be living with Jean-Luc.

Jean-Luc turned to look at Worf.  “Mister Worf, do you know anything about this?”

“No, Sir. Doctor,  I will get to the bottom of this and restore your codes immediately.”

Beverly smiled sweetly. “Thank you Worf.” 

“Was that all you needed, Doctor?”

“For now.  Crusher out.”  She ended the connection and dissolved into a fit of giggles.  She counted in her head and had gotten as far as six when her console dinged with a call.  Laughing, she activated her screen.

“Crusher here.”

“Beverly....that was....unexpected.  Seeing you on the screen like that...”

“Well, I needed to talk to you right away so I could help get to the bottom of Deanna’s problem and my codes wouldn’t work!  Who would dare turn them off?”

“Worf is checking. Most likely it was done when Doctor Pulaski took over Sickbay and your codes must have been deleted....which I have no intentions on doing.  For one thing, you will be back.  And for another, as you rightfully pointed out, your son is currently on board and you need to be able to reach him....and for more selfish reasons, I want you to be able to call me.”

“Anytime I want?”

“Anytime you want. Excuse me, that’s the door chime.  Come!”  Beverly could hear shuffling around and then heard Worf’s voice. 

She called out “Worf, is it fixed?”  

Jean-Luc turned the screen so Worf could look at Beverly. “Yes, Doctor.  It was an oversight for which I am extremely sorry.”

“No worries Worf.  Thank you!” 

Jean-Luc turned the monitor back towards him. “If that was all, Mister Worf?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“Dismissed.”

“Now that I have my access back, I suppose I should do what I intended to do in the first place before Deanna gets too far along in this pregnancy.”

“And that was?”

“First, I’m going to talk to Deanna, then I’m going to talk to Pulaski. Doctor to Doctor.  I’m sorry, Jean-Luc, I just don’t like this.”

“I don’t either, but please, be gentle when you speak with Doctor Pulaski.  I don’t want to have to ask for a second interim CMO.”

“Of course. Speak with you soon, my love.  Crusher out.”  Beverly keyed in her codes once again and this time got direct access into the communications system.  She selected Deanna and waited as the system paged her. 

A very pregnant Deanna Troi answered the call. “Troi here.”

Beverly tried not to stare at her friend “Deanna....I wanted to see how you were doing after our short chat this morning....”

“I’m pregnant, Beverly. _Very_ pregnant.”

“Yes, I can see that but you told me you thought you had been impregnated last night?”

“Yes.”

“And what does Doctor Pulaski say?”

“She thinks I am progressing fine, if not very fast.  She estimates I will give birth in less than three days.”

“Deanna, I’m going to speak to you as both your best friend and your doctor.  Are you really sure you should be going through with this? You’ve been violated by an alien entity and the changes your body is being forced to go through in such a short amount of time....Deanna, this could cause irreparable damage to you.”

“I...Doctor Pulaski thinks I will be alright.”

“I see. What if you are never able to have another child again?”

“Then I will have this one.” Deanna rubbed her bump. 

Beverly sighed. “You know, if your pregnancy is accelerated, the child’s development might well be accelerated too. If it’s aging an average of three months in one day....your child could reach adulthood in less than six years...and that’s assuming it’s able to cope with the high level of development it will be facing...and we don’t know what the alien was!”

“The child is half human, half Betazoid. There are no unknown DNA markers in it. Doctor Pulaski checked. Now Beverly, if you’re done lecturing me, I have some appointments to get to. Troi out!”

From the sound of the loud click, Deanna had stabbed hard at the button.  Beverly sighed.  There was no use in speaking with Pulaski after all. Not if she was entirely for this child coming into the world.

###

Wesley sat in front of the console in Captain Picard’s....no, _his_ quarters and paused as he tapped in the code that would give him access to speak with his mother.  After some careful consideration, Wesley had decided he wanted to stay on the _Enterprise_ instead of returning to Earth.  He hadn’t seen his grandparents since he was five anyway, so he didn’t feel like it was a hardship not seeing them.  Captain Picard...Uncle Jean-Luc if they were off-duty...had told Wesley he could remain in his quarters provided his mother agreed.  There was a twinkle in his eye when he said this though, so something made Wesley think that his mother and the Captain had already worked something out. 

His mother’s face filled the screen. “Wesley! So good to see you!”

“Hi, Mom.”

“I understand the excitement with Deanna’s child is over?”

“Mom, it was really weird.  The kid just kept growing and within one day he was already eight!  And then, he was causing all sorts of radiation problems so he just turned himself into this ball of light and left. “ 

On screen, Beverly nodded. Of course, she had already spoken with Jean-Luc and knew all of this, but it was nice to speak with her son.  “Anything else?”

“Uh....Yeah.  Mom....Do I have to...that is...Can I...the Captain....Uncle Jean-Luc said....” Wesley could not find the words he wanted, so he just blurted it all out. “Iwantotstayonthe _Enterprise_ andtheCaptainsaiditwasokifyoudid”

“Er..slow down there, Buster.”

“Sorry, Mom.  I, ah....I want to stay on the _Enterprise.”_

“I see.  And what did Jean-Luc say?”

“He said it was ok if you said it was ok.”

Beverly looked at her son.  This was what she and Jean-Luc had originally planned for, but she was going to make him stew.  “What about your grandparents?”

“Mom, I haven’t seen them since I was five.  What am I going to do in Iowa? Become a farmer?”  Beverly laughed.

“Yes, Wes, you can stay on the _Enterprise_.”

“Thanks, Mom!” 

“Jean-Luc has guardianship papers for you already.  Until I return to the _Enterprise_ , you will treat Jean-Luc as if he is your parent.  Understood?”

“Yes, Mom.  Think I should call him Dad?”

Beverly laughed. “If you do, please get a holorecording of his reaction for me.” Beverly heard the door swish open in the background. “Is he home?” she whispered. “Turn me towards him and do it!”  Beverly stifled a giggle. 

“Hello, Wesley.”

“Hello...Dad.....”  Jean-Luc’s jaw dropped and the room filled with Beverly’s beautiful laughter.

“Oh, the look on your face, Jean-Luc.  It was priceless.”

“I see you’re still able to play pranks from lightyears away.”  He grinned.

“Actually, this one was all on Wesley.  I told him you would have guardianship over him.”

“I see. Well, Wesley...I guess I am your Dad for the next year.  I’ll leave you to your conversation with your mother.  Beverly, I love you.”

“Love you too, Jean-Luc.” She blew a kiss at the screen before Wesley turned the monitor back towards him.

“Oh mom, that was fun.”

“It sure was.  Hey kid, I’m going to miss you this year.”

“Yeah mom, me too.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time jump. Mentions events from episodes 2x09 and 2x19. Chapter ends about 6 months into Beverly being away. (assume they did talk between 2x09 and 2x19 though!)

Beverly _hated_ Vulcan.  The planet was too hot and too dry and her human hair was simply unable to cope with the humidity.  She pushed a frizzy strand behind her ear and replicated yet another packet of hair pins.  She wiped the sweat off her forehead and not for the first time contemplated replacing her jumpsuit with a skant.  She had always hated the short unisex dresses, but in this kind of atmosphere, she could see the benefits of them. 

Beverly idly wondered what Jean-Luc would think about her wearing one, and laughed to herself.  She supposed she could send him a photo, or model it next time they had a video chat, but somehow it wouldn’t be the same as seeing his reaction in person.  She made a note to wear one when she arrived back home.... _Home. Did I just call the_ Enterprise _home?  I suppose it is....it’s where Wesley is....and Jean-Luc.  I mean, sure Nana is on Caldos, but when was I last there?  And I only lived on Earth briefly....yes, the_ Enterprise _is definitely my home._

She went to the replicator and fed her measurements in for it to create a skant for her to wear.  When it materialised, it came with knee high boots.  _Knee-high boots? In this weather?_ Beverly weighed the pros and cons of the two styles of uniform and finally decided the knee-highs, while they would make her legs sweat, would still be preferable to wearing the jumpsuit. At least with the Skant, part of her legs would be exposed and hopefully cooler. 

After changing, she reached for the pack of hairpins and began attempting to put her hair into some semblance of order.  _How do the Vulcans do this?_ And then it dawned on her....nearly every single Vulcan she had ever interacted with had close cropped hair.  _Hmmm.  No, I don’t think I would look good with hair that short, but perhaps I could get it cut slightly....maybe just below my ears?  Then at least my neck wouldn’t be so hot!_   Beverly decided she would venture into the tourist area on her next day off to get her hair cut, as there didn’t seem to be any kind of hairdressers near the Science Academy.  Beverly tossed her hair up in a messy bun and left her apartment.  It really was a lost cause, wasn’t it?

###

_To: Crusher, Beverly, MD, Starfleet Medical on Attachment to VSA_

_From: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain, USS Enterprise_

_Beverly,_

_I’m so sorry we haven’t had time to speak lately. I feel like all we’ve done for weeks is leave each other messages.  I find myself wanting to talk things over with you, as usual, and then being disappointed when you are not there.  I fear I am not giving Doctor Pulaski an adequate chance as Chief Medical Officer, but I can’t help but see her as simply a placeholder until your return.  We nearly lost her to a disease that aged people rapidly, at which point I found myself suddenly relieved you weren’t my CMO!  Because, Beverly...I do not think I could live without you._

_I actually need to speak with you about something else, and Beverly....please don’t be mad at me.  I’m sure by now you have been contacted by Philippa Louvois in regards to Mr Data?  Do you remember Phillipa?  She was in charge of my court martial after I lost the_ Stargazer _.  She was not a nice woman but despite all that...I slept with her.  THEN! NOT NOW!  Oh God, Beverly, please don’t think I slept with her now._

Beverly paused in her reading as a soft smile grazed her face. This is why Jean-Luc would have preferred to talk to her over video. Of course she remembered Phillipa. She hated that woman.  And she knew Jean-Luc had slept with her....he hadn’t come home to her house that night so what else was she supposed to assume?  He had come to her for comfort at the loss of his ship, but at the time she had been unwilling to sleep with him...even if she had wanted to. She understood.  She just hoped Philippa wouldn’t try anything with Jean-Luc this time around. She continued reading.

_She did try to come on to me, but I swear to you Beverly, I resisted her advances. I bought her dinner and I told her I was pursuing a relationship with someone else._

_This trial is hard for all of us.  Philippa appointed Will to act as the opposition, a position Will did not originally want.  She left him with no choice when she said if he wouldn’t, she would simply rule in Maddox’s favour.  But I am confident that we will come out of this with Data retaining his autonomy._

_I miss you ever day.  I hope I can see your face soon._

_Xx_

###

_To: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain, USS Enterprise_

_From: Crusher, Beverly, MD Starfleet Medical, On Attachment to VSA_

_Jean-Luc,_

_I knew._

_Xx_

Jean-Luc stared at the two-line message.  She knew about Philippa?  Beverly had never said anything or even ask him where he had been when he showed up at her breakfast table in the same uniform he had worn the previous day.  It obviously hadn’t bothered her then, or now, and he smiled.  It was the last day of Data’s trial, and he was hoping for good news.  He was going to read out Beverly’s statement and he knew it would bring them luck.  He affectionately touched the pip on his collar before leaving for the court room.

###

_To: Crusher, Beverly, MD, Starfleet Medical on Attachment to VSA_

_From: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain, USS Enterprise_

_Beverly,_

_Lwaxana Troi is here.  She’s looking for a husband. Help._

_Xx_

###

_To : Troi, Lwaxana, Ambassador, Daughter of the Fifth House, Holder of the Sacred Chalice of Rixx, Heir to the Holy Rings of Betazed_

_From:  Crusher, Beverly, MD Starfleet Medical, On Attachment to VSA_

_Lwaxana, my lovely, please back off.  Jean-Luc is mine!_

_Xxx_

###

_To: Crusher, Beverly, MD Starfleet Medical, On Attachment to VSA_

_From: Troi, Lwaxana, Ambassador, Daughter of the Fifth House, Holder of the Sacred Chalice of Rixx, Heir to the Holy Rings of Betazed_

_Well, why didn’t he say so in the first place!  That man of yours is too polite.  I guess you’re the one he was thinking about covered in chocolate sauce..._

Beverly blushed as she read her message from Lwaxana.  She of course knew to take anything Lwaxana said with a grain of salt as she liked to embellish things, but this was worth teasing Jean-Luc about later. 

Beverly fluffed out her hair . She had _finally_ found time to get it cut into a shorter ear-length bob.  Between the shorter hair and the skant, the weather wasn’t quite so bad.  Her birthday was tomorrow  and she thought she might even take a few days leave and explore some of the cities.  Jean-Luc had raved about some of the ruins on the planet.  It wasn’t really her thing, but maybe she could find something  in the gift shop to bring back for Jean-Luc if she went.  She queued up the information on the ruins on her console while she went and got herself a cup of tea.  She probably ought to change out of her uniform too, but with no one to do anything with, she just never bothered changing for dinner.  She was halfway back to her desk when her doorbell went off. _Odd. No one comes over.  Must be someone here by mistake._ She opened her door and was immediately engulfed in the embrace of a man wearing a red and black uniform.  His mouth met hers hungrily in a kiss which she was quick to return.

“Uhm. I really hope you’re my partner, because if you’re not, we’re going to have words.” She said into the chest of the man.  She heard the low rumbles of Jean-Luc’s laughter.

“Partner?”

“Would you prefer boyfriend?”

“I’m not a boy!” He kissed her once more. 

“Mm-hmm.”

“Fine, I see your point. No arguing. I’m only here for a few days but I couldn’t not see you on your birthday.”  He let his grip on her loosen and she took a step back.  Jean-Luc’s mouth went dry.  “Your....hair....and....that dress....those boots....Beverly, are you sure you weren’t expecting me?”

It was Beverly’s turn to laugh.  “I started wearing the skant....it’s more comfortable in this heat.  As to my hair...do you like it?”

“Hmm.  I suppose I can still run my fingers through it.  Did you cut it due to the heat as well?”  Beverly nodded. “Ah, see. This is an advantage to being bald.”

“You think I should shave my head?”

Jean-Luc ran his hands through her shorter hair. “No.  Please don’t.” 

“Are you going to come in? Or are we going to make out in the doorway?”

 Jean-Luc grabbed her by the waist once more. “I intend on ravishing you, so I guess I had better come in.”  He lifted her into his arms and she wrapped her legs around his waist as he walked into the small apartment and let the door slide shut behind him.  In between kisses, Beverly managed to get out “Computer, lock door.”

Jean-Luc ran his hands down Beverly’s back.  He smiled as he discovered the short skirt meant that Beverly’s bottom was mostly exposed.  He slipped a hand into the back of her panties and gently squeezed.  “Bedroom?”  Beverly moved one arm from around his neck and pointed in the direction of the small room. 

Jean-Luc strode in the direction Beverly pointed, and gently laid her on the bed.  He removed his duffel from his shoulder before he joined her on the bed and her hands went to remove his uniform.  Jean-Luc kicked off his boots and he and Beverly had barely managed to remove all of their clothing before they were joined together. 

“I missed you.”

“I missed you, too.”

Much later, when Beverly was lying in Jean-Luc’s arms, he looked over and saw the clock change to midnight.  “Happy Birthday, my love.”

###

“So how long are you here for?”

“I’m afraid only for five days...we’re currently in orbit. Did you want to go up to the ship and see everyone?”

“Would it be terrible if I just wanted one whole day with you first?”

“No, of course not.  But I think your son might be anxious to see you, too.”

“Why don’t we beam up tonight and have dinner with everyone?”

“An excellent idea, my love.  Would you like me to invite Doctor Pulaski too?”

“Hmm. And meet my replacement?  I don’t know....and do you think it would intimidate her to see me?  I’m not officially back for another six months...”

“We’ll play it by ear tonight. So, what do you want to do with our day today?” He grinned.

“Well, first I suppose I had better talk to the Academy and tell them I’m taking leave for five days...” Jean-Luc looked away.  “You...took care of it for me, didn’t you?” 

He nodded. “Are you mad?”

“No.”

“Good. So what do you want to do?”

“Hmm. Not get out of this bed until we absolutely have to.”

“That, my love, can be arranged.”  He pulled her on top of him and gently kissed her.

###

“Where do you want to have dinner?  Ten Forward? Our quarters?  The holodeck?”

Beverly raised her eyebrows. “Jean-Luc, did you just say ‘our quarters’?”

“Erm...I meant mine and Wesley’s?”

Beverly put her hands on her hips. “No, you didn’t. Out with it.”

“I thought when you get back you might...”

“Yes?”

“Uhm...want to live with me?  In my quarters?” Jean-Luc reached for Beverly’s hands.”I mean, Wesley is already settled in the second bedroom....so really, you’d be doing Wes a favour....”

“I would, would I?” He nodded. “Jean-Luc...do you think that would be...a little fast?  We were together for two weeks, I’ve been here for six months....we’ll have the next five days and then...what? In six months I move in with you? Is this _really_ what you want?”

“Well, no.  What I really want is for you to agree to marry me.”

“Jean-Luc....”

“I know, my love. I know. Too soon.”

“Too right it’s too soon.  But I tell you what, I’ll think about moving in with you when I return.....” 

Jean-Luc smiled.  “You will?”

“Yes. Do you think it would be too distracting in Ten Forward?”

“Hmm. I think we can get Guinan to help out.”

“Guinan?”

“Oh, that’s right. You haven’t met her yet.  She’s....special.  That’s all I can really say about her. You’ll like her. I promise.  Let me talk to Guianan and Wesley and get tonight sorted while you shower?”

“Oh,” Beverly slyly smiled. “I thought you would shower _with_ me....”

“Well, in that case...I think it can wait.”


	5. Chapter 5

“Jean-Luc?”  Beverly called to him as she was packing her bag for the next few days.

“Hmm?”

“What did you tell everyone was the reason I was here on Vulcan?”

“Oh. I told them you decided to take some leave when I told you the _Enterprise_ would be here.  It’s actually quite fortunate too, as several of our science officers will be at the Science Academy for a conference and it wouldn’t do to have them run into you.  By the way, there is a suite reserved in our names at the Hotel Skarzo. “

“Ah, that’s my Captain. Always on top of things.”  She came up behind Jean-Luc and wrapped her arms around him.

“I’d like to get on top of you...”  He turned around to embrace her. 

“Jean-Luc!  That was positively dirty of you!”

“What can I say, my dear?  You bring out this side of me...” He gently kissed her. “And I love you for it.”

“I love you too, Jean-Luc.  Now, let me finish packing.  I can’t wait to see everyone!”

“Pack the dress!”

“Jean-Luc!”

###

Dinner that night was very enjoyable.  Guinan was a lovely woman, and Beverly couldn’t help but think that she somehow knew the woman, even though she had never met her before.  Beverly had managed to talk about her work in general terms without giving away that she was working on Vulcan or working on Pa’nar.

She had also met the formidable Katherine Pulaski.  Of course, the two doctors were familiar with each other in name only having read reports written by the other and Kate had apparently attended a conference where Beverly had spoken, but Beverly wasn’t too keen on the woman.  She was a bit brisk.  Beverly declined the offer to visit Sickbay to see the changes Pulaski had made, and Kate was made more than aware that her time on board the _Enterprise_ would soon be over, and that she was merely a placeholder for Beverly. 

Kate hadn’t known Beverly was involved with the Captain, but she remembered back to the couple she saw embracing in the shuttlebay when she arrived and realisation dawned on her that it had been them.  Kate had wondered about the Captain – Not that she herself was interested in him, but she had been very curious as to why he would allow a child to remain on board without his parents, even if he had been an acting Ensign.  It was now clear to her the reasons were more than just Wesley being a good crewmen, and had to do with the relationship the three of them had.  For the first time, she heard the young Ensign refer to the Captain as “uncle”, and Kate wondered some more about the peculiar relationship between the ship’s Captain, its former CMO, and the Ensign.  She excused herself from the festivities, feeling as though she was intruding on a family party.  It was clear to Kate that she simply did not fit in and she would be relived to leave in six months.

Beverly glanced around the table at her friends and smiled.  “I have missed you....all of you.  You don’t know how glad I am to see you all!”

“I’m sure you’re glad to see some of us more than others, eh?”

“Will!”  Deanna smacked Will’s arm.

“What? Deanna, I meant _Wesley_....”

“Hmm. Sure you did.”

Beverly smiled. “I want to thank all of you for helping Wesley...but which one of you gave him girl advice? Hmmm? For a girl who turned out to be a shapeshifter with a nanny who nearly killed my son?”

“Err...ahhh....Guinan helped?”

“Oh, no, don’t go dragging me into this. You’re the one who asked me to pretend to be your girl!” Guinan said, bringing over a fresh bottle of wine for the table.

“Pretend to be his girl?  I need to hear this story...”  Wesley, Will, and Guinan proceeded to tell Beverly all about Salia and the advice Wesley had asked everyone for. 

“Curiously, Wesley never came to me,” Picard interjected. “Though I suppose he wouldn’t want my advice. After all, he knows it took me ten years to win you over.” 

Beverly grinned. “Hardly.  You know, I...never mind. It’s something for us to discuss privately.”

“Aww but Beverly, we’re all family here!”

Beverly reached around Wesley to shove Will.  “Stuff it, Will. There are some things I will _only_ be telling Jean-Luc.” Will pretended to pout. Beverly rolled her eyes. “I can’t believe I missed this. I must be insane.” 

###

“Mom?  Uncle Jean-Luc?”

“Yes, sweetheart?”

“Mom, I’m really glad you’re here and I want to spend time with you....”

Beverly levelled her ‘mom look’ at Wesley. “Hmm. There’s a but in there, isn’t there?”

“Well...uhhh.....I’m going to go stay with Geordi for the week....uhh....to give you two....privacy?”  His last word came out as a squeak. 

Jean-Luc smiled at the boy.  “Thank you, Wesley.  That’s very kind of you...and Mr LaForge. But I don’t want to take away from your time with your mother.  I know it’s going to be hard...you seeing me as not just your parent’s old friend and your Captain, but now also as your mother’s partner, but I hope it doesn’t cause you any....ill will.”

Wesley’s eyes went wide. “Oh, no Sir!  I am extremely happy for you and Mom.  I just ....wanted to let you two be alone.”

“Well, if that’s the only reason.  Thank you, Wesley.  I can’t speak for your mother, but I appreciate it.”

“I do too, Wes.  Come home for breakfast?”

“Sure, Mom.  Night Mom, Night Captain.”  Wesley turned and the doors swished shut behind him. 

“Back to calling me Captain, I see.”  Jean-Luc frowned. 

“Jean-Luc, give him time.  How has it been having him live with you?”

“Honestly? Beverly, it’s gone quite well.  We don’t often get the chance to eat together but if we’re both home we share meals together.  In the evenings, Wesley sometimes works on his studies while I read through reports.  I find I quite like having the boy around.”

“I’m pleased to hear it.” She snuggled closer to him on the sofa.  “I want my boys to get along.” 

“Your boys?” 

“Yes. Do you have a problem with that?” 

Jean-Luc turned his head and kissed the top of Beverly’s head. “I haven’t been a boy in a very long time...Wesley isn’t exactly a boy, either.”

“Mm. No, you’re still my boys.”  Beverly kicked off her shoes so she could tuck her legs under her.  “I like this...just being with you.  Jean-Luc, I don’t want to be away for another six months.  I want our relationship to progress....I want this.”

“I know.  How close are you to working out the cause of Pa’nar?”

“Oh, we know the cause.  It’s finding a cure...or a vaccine for it, that’s the problem.  Pa’nar is caused when people who don’t know how to do a mindmeld attempt it...my suggestion of teaching everyone how to mindmeld from a young age did _not_ go over well, let me tell you.”

Jean-Luc chuckled. “Ah, if only it were so simple. More wine?”  Jean-Luc indicated the open bottle on the table in front of them.

“Yes, please.”  Jean-Luc carefully refilled the glasses and passed one to Beverly as she continued. “I’m honestly not sure if there is a way to prevent it from happening other than education.  I _might_ be able find a cure for it, but....”

“It’d be better if you could prevent it outright.” Jean-Luc finished for her.  She nodded.  “Have there been any other studies about Pa’nar you could build on?”

Beverly shook her head.  “No. The Vulcans are so damned secretive and private...they hardly acknowledge the existence of the problem to begin with!” 

“Well, maybe a few days away will give you a fresh perspective.”  He put his glass of wine down again and pulled Beverly into his arms to gently kiss her. 

“Mm, I’m liking _this_ perspective....”  Her fingers slipped inside the bottom of Jean-Luc’s top and she stroked his back.  “Very much...”

###

Later, when they were lying in bed with their hands entwined, Beverly brought up what she nearly said during dinner.  “Jean-Luc?”

“Yes, my love?”

“Do you remember what I started to say during dinner?”

“Mm.  When I mentioned it taking me ten years?”

“Yes.  There’s something....I should tell you.”  She sat up and adjusted the blanket.  Jean-Luc sat up beside her and turned so they were looking at each other.  Beverly reached out and cupped his face with her other hand.  “Six years ago...” 

Jean-Luc cast his memory back.  Six years ago would have been shortly after Wesley broke his leg. He had asked Beverly if they could be together, and she had said no....and he had barely spoken to her again until she stepped foot onto his Bridge.  His mouth went dry. “I, ah...remember it.”

“I wanted to say yes.”

Jean-Luc turned his face and kissed her hand. “Why didn’t you?”

“I was scared.”  Beverly ran her hand from his face down to his shoulder and started tracing circles on his shoulder.  Jean-Luc enjoyed the sensation and tried to keep his focus on the conversation.

“Of?”

“Being with you...you don’t think I had feelings for you?  Jean-Luc, I had feelings for you when I was still married to Jack.  Do you remember that New Year’s I spent on the _Stargazer_?”  He nodded.  They had all gotten drunk and at the stroke of midnight after Jack kissed his wife, Jack insisted that she kiss Jean-Luc, too.  The kiss they shared had sent electric sparks through Jean-Luc.  He never thought it had meant anything to her. “I felt it too.  And I was scared...I was married to Jack, and pretty sure I was pregnant by that point and there you were....sending sparks down my spine with one kiss.”

“I never knew.  I just assumed you only saw me as a friend....”

Beverly squeezed his hand. “I know. And I’m grateful you didn’t push me for anything more after Jack died. I think I would have slept with you...but it would have ended badly.”  A tear rolled down Beverly’s cheek that Jean-Luc swiftly wiped away.

“Don’t cry, my love.  I didn’t make any advances on you then because I didn’t think it was appropriate....but why did you say no six months later?”

“I think I didn’t want to lose your friendship. I knew you had slept with Philippa...I was so angry with you, but then I realised what right did I have after I had rejected you?”

Jean-Luc kissed her tenderly. “I...see.  And now?”

“I can’t live without you. I guess I got over my fear...the fear changed...not that I would lose you as a friend if we dated, but that I would lose you if we didn’t.  Those six years we barely spoke were hard!”

“They were hard on me, too.  I kept thinking about you just across the bay from me and wondering if I could get up the nerve to talk to you...every time I saw someone with red hair and a blue uniform I did a double take thinking it was you...but I’m glad we’re together now.  We can put all of that in the past and concentrate on a future together.”  He kissed her soundly. 

“Jean-Luc?”

“Yes?”

“I want to move into your quarters when I return to the _Enterprise._ ”

“You do?”

“Yes. I...was being foolish earlier.  We should be together and we should be a family with Wesley before he leaves for the Academy.”

“A family?  Beverly...what are you trying to say to me?”

“Jean-Luc, will you marry me?”

Jean-Luc grasped her hand tighter.  Tears formed in the corner of his eyes.  All he could do was nod as he pulled her onto his lap tangling the covers around and between them as he poured all of his love into the one single kiss.  When they finally came up for air, Beverly smirked. “Was that a yes?”

“I might need to think about this....perhaps I need more incentive....”  He kissed his way down her throat and nibbled at the spot that made her moan.  “mmm...of course it was a yes....”  Jean-Luc struggled to free them from the confines of the twisted bedding.  “this calls for a celebration....”

###

Beverly flitted about their quarters in the morning.  Since she and Jean-Luc were on leave, neither of them had to get up as early as they did, but Wesley would be home soon to have breakfast with them before his shift and Beverly wanted to tell him first about their engagement.  She set the table while Jean-Luc replicated a simple breakfast for the three of them. 

Wesley sailed through the door at 0700.  “Morning Mom, Captain.”

“Morning, Wes. Coffee?”  Jean-Luc held out the cup to the younger man. 

“Thanks.”

 Beverly watched as the two men in her life went about finishing getting breakfast on the table.  They seemed to move in synchronicity with each other.  Obviously, the result of having shared quarters for the past six months. “Pay no attention to me, boys. I’ll just sit here and look pretty.”

“Mm, and you are the prettiest in the room, my dear.”  Jean-Luc dropped a kiss on her cheek.  “Sorry. Wesley and I have gotten into a bit of a routine these past few months. “

“I can see that,” she said with a smile.  “It’s so good to see you two haven’t had any problems living together. Especially as it might become permanent.”

Wesley dropped the basket of croissants he was holding. “P-Permanent?  Mom, you’re not coming back?”

“Wesley, don’t be silly. Of course I’m coming back.”  Her eyes twinkled with mischief.  “But it _is_ customary for a husband and wife to live together and for their children to live with them, so....”

It took Wesley a minute to process what his mother had just said to him. “You’re getting married?”  Beverly nodded. “This is fantastic! Congratulations Mom, Sir!”  Wesley held out his hand to shake Jean-Luc’s and Jean-Luc surprised the boy by pulling him into a hug. 

“Are you sure you won’t mind having your Captain as your step-father?”

“No, sir.  Besides, I’ve been wanting you to marry Mom since I was seven.” Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows.  “I...uh...wanted you to be my dad, Sir. And every time you visited you made mom smile.  Sir, does this mean I can call you dad, now?”

Jean-Luc looked over at Beverly.  Tears were gleaming in her eyes as she nodded her approval.  “Yes, son. I would be honoured if you would,”  Jean-Luc smiled at the boy and then turned a sterner face towards him.  “But definitely _not_ on the bridge!”

Wesley smirked. “Yes, Sir.”  He waited until Jean-Luc had taken a sip of his morning coffee before continuing. “So, am I going to get a little brother or sister?”

Jean-Luc spat out his coffee.  “Wesley!” 

“What? _Dad_ , I was only asking...”

Jean-Luc looked over at Beverly for help, but she was busy hiding her mirth behind a large croissant.  “Er....ah...let’s get through the next six months first, shall we?”

“Wes, it’s good to know you want to be an older brother, but I don’t think we’re quite ready for babies yet,” Beverly added.  “Besides, I don’t want Jean-Luc to miss out on the fun of having a pregnant wife!” Jean-Luc groaned remembering how Jack had described Beverly when she had been pregnant with Wesley.  Beverly changed the subject.  “So Wes, what’s your schedule like?  I have five days of leave and I would love to be able to spend at least some time with my son...”

“Umm...alpha shift today, then two rest days, then over to gamma shift....but I have classes on my rest days in the afternoon.”

“Perfect. We can spend the morning together tomorrow, and then Jean-Luc and I can get married in the evening.”

Jean-Luc choked on his coffee again.  “Wha...what? You want to get married _tomorrow_?”

“No point in waiting, is there?  There must be another Captain somewhere on Vulcan....or can you appoint Will?”

“Will is currently in command, I’m officially on leave.  He has all the rights and privileges of a Captain.”

“Good. It’s settled. Will will marry us tomorrow evening. “ She clapped her hands.  “We have a lot to to do today!”

Jean-Luc groaned.  But how hard could planning a wedding in one day really be?


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that Beverly seemed to have changed her mind quickly, but I think she probably wanted to tell Jean-Luc yes when he asked her the night before and she only thought they should wait longer. Besides, I know plenty of couples who got married on short notice!

The wedding, as it turned out, was anything but simple to arrange. First, there was the paperwork – copies of their birth certificates, copy of Beverly’s marriage certificate to Jack, a copy of Jack’s death certificate, _Wesley’s_ birth certificate...and this was before the actual marriage license was even issued.  Jean-Luc found himself surrounded by PADDs at his small desk in his quarters and they had spilled over to Wesley’s desk. 

“Beverly, my love, why do we need to file Wesley’s birth certificate with all of ours?”

“Well, I thought you would want him to be your son.”

“I....do...but, don’t you think Wesley should decide if he wants me to be his father?  I realise he’s fifteen and not a young boy anymore...I wouldn’t want to force myself on him.”

 Beverly came over and rested her hands on his shoulders. “Jean-Luc.  A few hours ago Wesley offered to call you ‘Dad’.  I _think_ it’s safe to say he wants you to be his father.”

“Hmm.  If we file this, will that change his name?  I don’t want...well, I don’t want him...or you...to think I’m trying to replace Jack.”

Beverly turned Jean-Luc’s chair so she could straddle his legs.  “Nobody thinks you’re trying to replace Jack.  I don’t want you to ever think that.”  She leaned forward and kissed him.  Jean-Luc responded by grabbing her around her waist and pulling her down on to his lap. He attacked her neck with his lips and briefly wondered how much time they had until Wesley returned between his shift and class. 

“Computer: Time?”

“Eleven Forty-Eight.” Jean-Luc groaned.  “What’s wrong, my love?”

“I had hoped we had some time before Wesley came home for his school books...”

“Mmm, we can do a lot in twelve minutes...”

###

The second thing that needed to be arranged for the wedding was, naturally, a wedding party.  Beverly wanted only the senior staff present at the wedding to prevent it from becoming a three-ringed circus and Jean-Luc readily agreed.  Will Riker, as acting Captain, would of course, be performing the ceremony.  Deanna would be filling the post of Maid of Honour.  Wesley, would be performing double-duty as he would both give away his mother and stand as Jean-Luc’s Best Man.  Data had offered to play his violin and Guinan said she would handle the wedding banquet.  Worf did not quite understand the need for all of the pomp and circumstance, but he had agreed to attend the wedding and observe.  Geordi had offered to take some holopictures and recording of the wedding, and Doctor Pulaski had graciously declined her invitation, citing that she did not want to intrude on so intimate of a wedding.  Beverly had shrugged when Jean-Luc relayed the message back to her. 

The last thing, as far as Beverly was concerned, was organizing something to wear. She wasn’t overly bothered, but she wanted to look nice.  Beverly had beamed down into the tourist area next to the SCA to look for something to wear, but she wound up back at her own apartment digging through her closet before giving up and returning to the ship empty handed.  Jean-Luc would, naturally, be wearing his dress uniform, as would the rest of the attendees, but Beverly had thought she might like to wear an actual wedding dress.  She had nearly resigned herself to wearing her dress uniform when Deanna suggested she go look in the ship’s stores.  Buried deep in the back she found the same cream coloured two-piece she had worn when Jean-Luc had taken her into one of his Dixon Hill holonovels.  She decided it was perfect, though she would wear it without the hat this time. 

Jean-Luc had also beamed down to the planet, but his mission was to find wedding rings for the couple.  They didn’t want anything flashy, just simple matching bands.  His mission accomplished, he beamed back up and met Beverly in the corridor.  A garment bag was draped over her arm. 

“No peeking!” She teased him as he took the garment bag off her.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

###

Jean-Luc, Beverly, and Wesley were eating dinner together that evening when Jean-Luc decided to broach the subject of his guardianship over Wesley.

“Wesley,  I need to talk to you about something important.”

“Yes, Sir?”

“Seven months ago, I agreed to be your guardian for the year whilst your mother was away.  I didn’t just do this because I was in love with your mother, Wes. I did it because I love and care about you too and have always thought of you as part of my family.” Jean-Luc paused to gather his thoughts and took a sip of wine to calm his nerves.  “And now, with marrying your mother...I was wondering if you would like to make it official?”

“Official, Sir?”

“Yes. Wesley...would you like me to adopt you? You can say no and I won’t be offended.  Your father was my best friend, and I don’t want to take him away from you.”

Wesley looked over at Beverly. “Mom?”

“Yes, Wes?”

“What do you want me to do?” 

“My opinion is irrelevant, Wes. It’s what do _you_ want?”

“Umm...can I think about it?”  Jean-Luc nodded.  “Mom, Dad, have you told anyone else about the wedding yet?” 

Beverly nodded. “Only Will, Deanna, Worf, Geordi, and Data. Why?”

“Can I be excused?  I’m sleeping at Geordi’s tonight again.”

“Sure, sweetheart. See you in the morning for a mother-son morning?”

“Ok, Mom.”

###

“Geordi, can I talk to you?”

“Uh, Sure Wes. What’s up?”

“Geordi....you’re a Captain’s kid, right?”

“um...yeah.”

“Did the other kids...did they treat you differently?”

Geordi gestured to his VISOR. “What do you think, Wes?”

“Oh, right. Sorry.”

“What’s this all about, Wes?”

“Uhm...Well, you know Mom’s marrying the Captain, right?”

“Your mom and the Captain told us this morning at the staff meeting.  Are you happy for them?”

Wesley grinned. “Very.  But...the Captain offered to adopt me...I want him to be my dad, but....”

“...You’re afraid people will treat you differently if you’re the Captain’s son?”  Wesley nodded.  “Wesley, let me ask you this.  How many fifteen-year-olds are on board?”

“Uhm....I don’t know? Maybe ten?”

“And out of those ten kids, how many were made acting Ensign?”

“Uhh....just me.” 

“And did you get that because you were the Captain’s kid?”

“No.  He and Mom weren’t even dating then.” Realisation dawned on Wesley. “And the other kids don’t really treat me any differently.”

“Ok, good. And what about when you said you would be staying on the ship and living with the Captain?”

“Uhh...well, Anders was a little jealous that I got to live with the Captain, but they were all just happy I was staying.”

“There you go. Now, do you think that becoming the Captain’s son will really make a difference with your friends?”

“I guess not.  Geordi, I’ll be back. I need to go....I need to talk to Dad!” 

Geordi grinned as he watched the young man hurry out of his quarters.  He called out to the retreating figure, “See you later, Wes!”

When Wesley arrived back at his quarters he wasn’t sure if he should just barge in....he didn’t want to walk in on anything.  He decided to ring the chime and when he heard the Captain, no, his father,  give the command to open the door, he rushed inside.

“Mom....Dad....I’ve made a decision.”  Beverly and Jean-Luc were sitting on the sofa close together with the rest of the wine from dinner on the table in front of them.  It didn’t look like Wesley had interrupted anything, but he took a breath and asked “Did I interrupt anything?”

“No, of course not Wesley. Have a seat.” Jean-Luc indicated the chair next to the sofa. “You didn’t need to ring the chime. These are _your_ quarters too.”

“I...uh...didn’t want to...interrupt....uhmm....”

“I see.  Yes, I think it would have been traumatising if you  had walked in on...well, never mind. The point is, this is your home too and you shouldn’t feel like you ever need to ring the bell to enter. Now, what have you decided?”

Wesley gingerly sat on the edge of his chair.  “I want you to be my dad I want you to adopt me when you marry Mom.” 

Beverly jumped up and pulled Wesley into a hug “Wes, that’s brilliant!”  Jean-Luc got up to join the hug.  “Thank you, son.  It means a lot to me.”

“Sir, will I change my name?”

“Do you want to?  You can still be my son and be Wesley Crusher.  Or you can be Wesley Picard, it’s entirely up to you.”

“Mom? Are you changing your name?”

Beverly nodded .”Yes, sweetheart. I thought about not changing it since I have made a name for myself as Doctor Crusher, but Crusher is Jack’s name, not mine.  I only kept Crusher after your father died because I wanted us to keep the same name. Otherwise I would have gone back to using Howard.”

“Oh.  Then I think I will change my name too.  But can I leave Crusher and be Wesley Crusher Picard?”

Beverly beamed.  “I like that.”

“Ok, well...I’m gonna go back to Geordi’s now....goodnight Mom....goodnight _Dad_.”

“Goodnight...son.” As the door slid shut behind Wesley, Jean-Luc turned towards Beverly. “You raised a good son.”

She smiled. “No, we did.” 

“We?”

“Jean-Luc, after Jack died, you were the only father figure Wesley ever had. I never dated anyone else.”  She pushed him down into the chair Wesley vacated and plopped into his lap.  “I didn’t want to.”

“I...ah...” Beverly silenced him with a kiss.  “Less talking, more kissing.” She pulled his shirt off over his head. 

“But we told Wes he...”  Jean-Luc trailed off as Beverly’s dress joined his shirt on the floor.

###

It was Beverly and Jean-Luc’s wedding day.  Everything, as far as Beverly was concerned, was ready. She was free to enjoy her morning with her son...only, what do you do with a fifteen-year-old wunderkind?  She knew if he was left to his own devices, he would spend his morning off in Engineering conducting experiments on the Warp Core or spending the morning in Data’s lab, but Beverly wanted to do something fun with her son.  She was perusing the holodeck programs when Jean-Luc came out of their bedroom wearing his workout clothing.

“Going for a run? Don’t tire yourself out. I have plans for you tonight....”

Jean-Luc kissed her cheek “Wouldn’t dream of it, my love. Just going for a jog on the treadmill.  I haven’t gone in a couple days and I can feel it in my muscles.”

“Oh? And what _have_ you been doing the past few days instead?” She winked. 

“ _You.”_ Jean-Luc  gave her a quick kiss before heading for the door. “Enjoy your morning with Wesley!”

The door slid open and Jean-Luc nearly ran into Wesley.  “Morning, Dad.  Off jogging?”

Jean-Luc nodded. “You should join me sometime. Very invigorating.”

“Um...no thanks. I’ll take your word for it.” Wesley could think of a lot more...invigorating things....than jogging on a treadmill. What was the point? You didn’t actually get anywhere. 

Jean-Luc turned back towards Wesley before leaving “Oh, and Wes, I finally found you a dress uniform.  It’s in your room.”

“Uh. Thanks, Dad.” 

“So, Wes, what would you like to do this morning?”  Beverly smiled and held out the PADD “I’ve been looking at the holodeck programs, but what are you in the mood for?”

“Actually, Mom, could we go down to the planet?  I’ve never been to Vulcan and Geordi said they have a really cool technical museum at the Science Academy!”

Mentally, Beverly wondered how many people would recognize her if she was on campus today, but then decided they might not if she wasn’t wearing her uniform and if she pulled her hair back...plus, she would be with Wes, and it would probably just look like a mother and prospective student looking around the academy.  She just didn’t want Wesley to know she was working there...he wasn’t allowed to know. “Uh, sure Wes. You know, it’s really hot down there though. You might want some shorts. I’m going to change into something cooler, be ready in fifteen minutes?”

“Sure, Mom.”

###

Beverly had managed to enjoy herself that morning with Wesley and fortunately, hadn’t run into anyone she knew from her lab.  They had returned to the _Enterprise_  in time to grab Lunch together in Ten Forward before Wesley had to go to class.  The wedding would be taking place that evening at 1900, and Beverly had six  hours to kill before she even needed to think about getting ready.  Fortunately, Jean-Luc was just as lost, having been shooed out of his Ready Room by his First Officer.  He found Beverly in Ten Forward, looking out the window at Vulcan below.  He snuck up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. Beverly breathed in the familiar smell of Jean-Luc and leaned back into his embrace. 

“Should we really be doing this here?”

“Doing what?”  Jean-Luc rested his chin on her shoulder and looked at them in the reflection of the window.

“ _This_. Show affection?  What happened to not wanting everyone to know?”

“Mmm...you do realise we are getting married this evening, yes? And Wesley will be changing his last name to Picard?  I think the whole ship will know at that point that we’re together, don’t you?”

“You might have a point there.” Beverly turned around in his arms so she could rest her head against his chest. “I’m glad we won’t have to hide.”

Jean-Luc tilted her chin up and gave her a kiss. “Me too.  Have you eaten?”

Beverly nodded. “I ate with Wes. Haven’t you?”

“No. Ah, I’ve been busy...”

Beverly rolled her eyes and motioned for one of Guinan’s servers to come over.  “Bring the Captain a ham sandwich on rye bread with Gruyere, mustard, lettuce, and tomato, some crisps, and a cup of Earl Grey?  Oh, and a cup for me, too please.” She pointed to a table nearby and turned back to Jean-Luc. “Sit. Eat.  I’m not having my groom faint on me later.”

“Yes, dear.”  A plate was soon sat in front of him with his Lunch. “Ah, you remembered my favourite.”

Beverly stole a crisp off his plate. “Of course.  I’m only sad it’s not my own rye bread recipe.”

“Why don’t you program it into the replicator in our quarters?” 

“That’s a good idea. I’ll do that this afternoon.”

“Why this afternoon?”

“I need something to do or I’ll go mad counting down until tonight!”

“Ah, I see.  Not taking the Counsellor up on her offer of using the holodeck spa program with her?”

Beverly scoffed.  “No.  That’s really not my thing.  You should know that!”

“I know.  But it might be relaxing.  Get a massage...soak in a whirlpool tub....”

“Hmm. These sound like things I might want to do with _you_ , not Deanna.”

Jean-Luc ate the last bite of his sandwich and swigged his last sip of tea. “I’m done eating.  Want to?”

“You don’t think Deanna would mind, do you?”

“No, I don’t think she would.”  

They hurried to Holodeck Five and Beverly scrolled through the spa options until she found the one she wanted – a “couples massage” session.  They entered the holodeck and Jean-Luc engaged the lock and informed the computer not to let anyone disturb them unless the ship was on fire.  Beverly then instructed the computer to let her know when it was 1700 so they would have plenty of time to get ready for the wedding.  They disrobed behind the privacy screen and both laid face-down on their respective tables.  The masseuses kept up a steady stream of chatter the couple tuned out as they each enjoyed their massage.  After the massage, they headed to the whirlpool tub and proceeded to make love in the foamy water. 

###

“We have three days to have a honeymoon with before the conference is over.  I’m not sure if I can make excuses for the _Enterprise_ to stay any longer than that.”

“Hmm. That’s alright. The sooner I get back to my lab, the sooner  I can get this project done and be back. I can’t believe we will be apart for six months.”

“We just managed six months, so think of it as halfway through.”  Beverly frowned. “Besides, we’ve been apart for longer than six months before.”

“But we weren’t married then!” 

“You were married to Jack, though and coped.”

“Hmm.  Jack wasn’t you.  And I had Wesley.  It was a lot easier not thinking about you and Jack being away when I had to concentrate on raising Wesley.”

“You want to take Wesley with you?  I’m sure he would enjoy the VSA.”

“Ha-Ha.  No, I’ll cope.”

“If you’re sure. I mean, I love Wesley but if you really needed to take him with you...”

Beverly smirked. “Oh no. You’re raising him now.  You’re the one who volunteered.”

Jean-Luc drew Beverly closer to him in the warm water. “I suppose I did. And I have to say, it was a pretty good decision.” 

“Oh? Why’s that?”

“Well, his mother has the most sensitive spot.....right....here....”  He sucked on her neck just below her earlobe, eliciting a moan. 

“Go on, please continue.”

Jean-Luc was interrupted by the computer. “The time is now 1700.” Beverly shifted to get out of the water, with Jean-Luc following behind.

“I’d say I’m sad it’s 1700, but we’ll be married in two hours so I can’t really complain, can I?” 

“No, Jean-Luc. I don’t think you can.”

###

Jean-Luc recognized her suit as soon as she appeared in the doorway of Ten Forward on Wesley’s arm and he smiled.  The day she wore it they had gone into one of his holonovels and it had turned into quite the adventure. Beverly had played her part well, down to kissing Dixon Hill passionately in his office.  It was that kiss that had started their relationship.  He was glad it had meant as much to her as it had to him. 

Beverly and Wesley arrived at the dais, and Jean-Luc shook Wesley’s hand before Wesley came to stand next to him and he clasped Beverly’s hand in his.  The ceremony itself was short and sweet and after the “I do”s and ring exchange he and Beverly met in a kiss that had Will and Geordi wolf calling. 

Guinan had closed Ten Forward for the evening due to a “Private function”, but had directed her staff to open a bar on Holodeck Two instead and she had gone all out for their wedding dinner, complete with a three-tiered cake with a miniature Jean-Luc and a miniature Beverly on top.  Data had provided the ceremony music, but for their first dance they had used pre-recorded music.  Beverly swayed in the arms of her husband and all felt right in the world. 

 

 


	7. Chapter 7

“You know, my love, as much fun as I think spending the next three days in bed with you would be, we should probably at least get out of bed at some point today....”  Jean-Luc trailed off as Beverly’s mouth found a sensitive spot.  “On the other hand....I can see....the benefits....of staying.....right here.....” 

 “Bridge to Captain Picard” Jean-Luc groaned.

“I’m on leave.  Contact Commander Riker!” 

“Sir, it’s for you and Doctor Crusher.  Priority One.”  Jean-Luc exchanged looks with Beverly and sat up in bed. 

“Give me ten minutes and then put it through to my quarters.”

“Yes, Sir. What shall I say is the reason for the delay?”

“Don’t give them one.”

“Yes, Sir.” 

Jean-Luc got out of the bed he was sharing with Beverly and stretched.  “I guess we had better put some clothing on.” He frowned. “This had better be worth interrupting our honeymoon.”  Beverly stretched and nodded.

“And maybe a cup of coffee.”

“I’ll get the coffee.”

When they both finally looked presentable, they had the call sent to their quarters and the screen was filled with Admiral Nechayev’s face. 

“Captain.  Commander.”

“Admiral Nechayev,” Jean-Luc said apprehensively “what can we do for you?”

“It seems to me some interesting paperwork has come across my desk this morning.”

“Oh?”

“I appear to be looking at some formal name change papers, a marriage certificate, and an adoption certificate.  Captain Picard, did you just marry your Chief Medical Officer?”

“Admiral, I can honestly say that I have not married my current Chief Medical Officer.”

Admiral Nechayev glared. “Captain, you know _exactly_ what I meant.”

“Did I marry Doctor Beverly Crusher and adopt her son? Yes, yes I did.  But is she my current CMO?  No, she is not.”

“I...see.  So you feel that you have not done anything wrong?  Nothing that would be considered a breach of conduct?”

Jean-Luc pursed his lips. “No, Sir. Beverly is currently on assignment to Starfleet Medical.  However, I would like to request for my wife to be reassigned to the _Enterprise_ once her assignment is over.”

“Denied.”

Beverly saw red.  She glanced over at her husband and gripped his hand tightly. “Admiral Nechayev, please accept this as my formal resignation from Starfleet effective immediately.” 

Jean-Luc chimed in “And I will be exercising my rights to have my family on board with me, which will include my wife and son.”

Admiral Nechayev sputtered. “But you....you....Doctor Crusher-“

“Picard,” Beverly threw in.

“Fine. Doctor Picard, this is outrageous. You are a decorated Starfleet Commander spearheading a special project. You simply cannot resign.”

“Have it your way then, Admiral. I resign. I will relinquish control of the _Enterprise_ t _o_ Commander Riker,” Jean-Luc responded coolly.  “I will, of course, leave the ship as soon as it is possible to join my wife on her assignment.”

Admiral Nechayev banged on her desk, shaking the comm unit and making her image waver.

“You will do no such thing, Captain. You are the commanding officer of the flagship.  You are the highest ranking Captain in all of Starfleet. You cannot simply throw it away over...”

“What, Admiral?” Beverly asked sweetly.  “A woman?  His best friend?  The woman who has been a part of his life for the past seventeen years?”

“But you...ah...were married...to Lieutenant Commander Crusher...”

“Yes, I was. But you may be aware that he died in the line of duty over ten years ago. I also think it’s none of your business – or Starfleet’s – what goes on in our personal lives.”

“I...ah...”  Admiral Nechayev was lost for words.  “Fine.  Doctor Cr-Picard, you will resume your duties as Chief Medical Officer on the _Enterprise_  as soon as your current assignment is finished.  Captain Picard, I expect you to give your CMO no special treatment simply because she is your wife, is that understood?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“Good.”  Admiral Nechayev sat back in her chair and muttered “Newlyweds. Ugh.”  Louder she said “Nechayev out.” as the screen went blank.

Jean-Luc let out the breath he hadn’t realised he had been holding in and pulled Beverly into his lap.  He buried his face in her hair and just kept saying “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, my love, I’m sorry” over and over until Beverly made him look into her eyes.  She gently kissed him. “Hey.  No harm done.”

“Beverly...you nearly threw away your career for me.”

“Do I need to point out that just after I did, you nearly threw yours away for me?”

Jean-Luc smiled. “We’re quite a pair, aren’t we?”

Beverly laughed.  “Indeed we are.  I love you, Jean-Luc Picard.”

“I love you, Beverly Picard.”  He was leaning in for a kiss when –

“Bridge to Captain Picard.”

He groaned. “I. Am. On. Leave. Give it to Riker!”

“But Sir, it’s Admiral Skussi and he’s asking for a Doctor Picard?”

Jean-Luc sighed while Beverly giggled and stood up from his lap. “Put him through.”  He turned to his wife. “You know, we will have to tell the crew eventually.”

“How do you propose we do that? A shipwide announcement? ‘Attention all hands, The captain has married the CMO?’ No wait, ‘The Captain has married Doctor Crusher, former CMO’?”

“Works for me.”

The screen lit up with Admiral Skussi’s face. “Ah, Commander.  Captain.  How fortunate to reach the both of you. I wish to extend my congratulations and best wishes on your marriage.”

“Thank you, Admiral.”

“Yes, thank you. Admiral Skussi, did you call just to congratulate us?”

“No, I did not.  Commander, it has come to my attention that newlywed couples wish to spend their time together?”

“Yes, Admiral.  But don’t worry, I will return to my post in three days when the _Enterprise_   leaves Vulcan.  Jean-Luc...the Captain and I will be fine separated until I finish my assignment on Vulcan.”

“Very good, Commander. I understand you are making good progress?”

“Some.  I think we might be able to treat the illness, but I’d rather we also be able to develop a vaccine for it.  So far, the only preventative care is to just educate people.”

“Treating it is a step in the right direction.  Captain Picard?  I did want to speak with you as well.”

“Yes, Admiral?”

“I am in need of transportation to Vulcan from Starbase one-seven-two  in about a month’s time, and I will require for my transportation to remain in orbit for at least two weeks whilst I conduct business.  I would like to use the _Enterprise_.  Please be here in four weeks.”

“Yes, Admiral.”

“Skussi out.”

The screen went dark and Jean-Luc grinned at his wife. “Well, fancy seeing your husband in about a month?” Beverly grinned back. “I’ve had worse offers.”

Jean-Luc was just leaning in to kiss his bride when once again, he was interrupted.

“Bridge to Captain Picard.”

“Bloody hell! I told you I’m on leave!”

“I’m sorry Sir, but it’s Admiral Quinn for you.” 

Jean-Luc sighed. “Fine, fine. Put him through,”  Beverly gave him a quick peck on the lips. “After this, we are leaving the ship without our communicators!”

The screen once again came to life.  “Hello, Jean-Luc.”

“Ah, Greg.  What can I do for you?”

“Well, I’ve just heard the news...Beverly, is that you?”  

“Hello, Gregory. Good to see you.”

“And you too, my dear.  Now....I hear some congratulation are in order?  Frankly, Jean-Luc, it’s about time.”

“Sir?”

“Don’t you Sir me.  You were pining over the lovely Beverly Crusher seventeen years ago when you first met her.  I saw the looks you gave her at her and Jack’s wedding!”  

“I....I....” Jean-Luc was at a loss for words.  Gregory Quinn had been a long-time friend of Jean-Luc’s  and he was shocked his old friend had picked up on his feelings for Beverly back then.  He glanced over at Beverly, who noticed her husband was turning a rather fetching shade of pink.

“Gregory, that wasn’t very nice.  Stop teasing Jean-Luc.  I swear, you boys still act like you’re at the Academy.” 

“Sorry, Beverly.  Now then, when are you two going on a honeymoon?”

“We’re trying to have one right now before the science conference is over and we have to leave each other.”

“No, no, that won’t do.  You both need to take some time off and go away together. Why don’t you go use my house on Betazed?”

“Ah, thank you for the offer, Gregory, but I’d like to finish up my research with Starfleet Medical as soon as possible so I can join Jean-Luc back on the _Enterprise_...but maybe after?”

“Alright, the offer is always there.”

“Thank you, Greg.  We really do appreciate it. Now, if you don’t mind.....”

“Oh, no. Of course not. Quinn out.”

Jean-Luc eyed the console.  “Pack a bag, my love. I think we’ll be making use of those reservations down on the planet.”

“Mm, I have a better idea. We’ll go to my apartment.  No one knows I’m there except for Skussi and my team at the VSA...who wouldn’t bother me.  Vulcans might not understand the reasons behind taking a holiday, but they at least respect it!”  Beverly got up and went into their bedroom to repack her belongings. 

Jean-Luc was rising from her chair when once again he was paged. “Bridge to Captain Picard.”

“Damn it, Ensign.  Which part of ‘I am on leave, direct everything to Commander Riker’ isn’t understood? In fact, I am leaving the ship for three days and will not be taking my badge with me, either! I’ll beam back with the science team at the conference!”

“Yes....Sir....but,  I have a Captain Keel for you?” 

“Fine. Put him through. But the next call I get, you tell them to either talk to Riker or leave a message!”

“Of course, Sir.”

“Hey Johnny!  What’s this I hear about you getting married to Bev?”

“Who told you?”

“Alynna.  You know, I’m thinking about asking her out again. She did just get divorced...”

“Right. Thanks for calling Walker. Yes, I married Beverly.  And we’re _trying to have our honeymoon_.”

“Ah, I see. I see. And where is the lovely Beverly? No doubt she’s waiting for you in bed, isn’t she?  You old dog!  You know, I always thought I should have introduced her to you instead of Jack all those years ago-“  Jean-Luc cut him off. “Yes, well, we’re together now. Thank you for your wishes...we’ll speak to you soon....Picard out!” 

This time, when the screen went blank, Jean-Luc wasted no time in getting up and moving into the bedroom. 

“Picard to Riker.”

“Riker here.”

“Number One, I am leaving the ship for the rest of Beverly’s leave.  Please do not have anyone attempt to reach me. I would like to have a small honeymoon with my wife before she has to leave!”

“Of course, Sir.”

“I’ll beam back with the science team.  Picard out.” Jean-Luc pulled his comm badge off his chest and laid it on his dresser. “I am _not_ taking that with me.” 

Beverly laughed.  “Do you think we should tell Wes we’re leaving?”

“Probably.”  Jean-Luc reached for his badge once more and tapped it.  “Picard to Ensign C...Picard.”

“Picard here.  Hi, _Dad_.”

“Wes, your mother and I wanted you to know we are leaving the ship for a few days to have a honeymoon on the surface.”

“Uh... Ok.  Have fun.  By the way, is my name change through?”

“Yes, Wesley.  Officially, you are Wesley Robert Crusher Picard.”

“Ace.  Hey Dad?”

“Yes, Wes?”

“I’m really glad you married Mom.”

“Thank you, son.  Picard out.”  Jean-Luc turned towards Beverly. “I really do like it when he calls me Dad.”  He drew her into his arms and kissed her.  “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For giving me a son...I never thought...I always...well, never mind. I love you, Beverly Picard.”

“I love you, Jean-Luc.  You know, we could have another if you wanted.”

“Another what?”

“Child.  I’m not so old that I couldn’t have a baby...if you want one.”

Jean-Luc pulled back from the embrace to look at Beverly.  “Do _you_ want one?”

“Maybe.  Not yet though.”

“Hmm....I might like a little girl...with her mother’s red hair...blue eyes...fiery temper...”

“Oh no, you don’t want that. Trust me.”

Jean-Luc kissed her nose. “We’ll see.  But for now, you...” he gestured towards her abdomen.

She nodded. “I updated my implant last year just in case we...well, just in case.  It’s good for another three years, but I can take it out of we decide we want to have a baby.”  She played with the hair on the back of his neck.  “And of course, we’ll have to do a _lot_ of practicing....starting.....now.”  She fell backwards on the bed, pulling him down on top of her. 

“Mmm, shouldn’t we wait until we get to your apartment?” 

“You may be right. Who knows who else might call us if we stay here!”  Beverly reluctantly got up and shouldered her bag. “I packed for you,”  she said pointing to the other bag. 

“Thanks. Shall we?”  Arm-in-arm, the newlyweds made their way to the transporter room and beamed down to the surface. By the time the conference was over, and Jean-Luc and Beverly beamed back to the ship so Beverly could say goodbye to her son and friends, the whole ship knew of their marriage. 

 


	8. Chapter 8

Beverly looked at the sequence code on her monitor and wanted to jump for joy.  She had _finally_ isolated the cause of the Pa’nar Syndrome.  Not only was Pa’nar caused by inexperienced Vulcans performing mind melds, but the people who developed Pa’nar also had a minute defect in their frontal lobes.  This defect was noted at birth, but as it appeared to cause no harm to the individuals, it did not get fixed.  However, if they identified those individuals and corrected the defect, Beverly was sure Pa’nar could be eliminated. 

It was good timing, too.  Admiral Skussi would be back again on board the _Enterprise_ in two weeks. If Beverly could prove her findings while the _Enterprise_ was still in orbit, she might have a chance at returning sooner than she had anticipated. 

_To: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain USS Enterprise_

_From: Picard, Beverly, Commander, MD Starfleet Medical, On Attachment to VSA_

_Jean-Luc,_

_I think I did it!  If Admiral Skussi agrees with me, I might be able to rejoin the_ Enterprise _sooner than we had hoped.  Any chance of assuming my former duties early?_

_How’s Wesley doing? I miss you!_

_Xx_

###

_To: Picard, Beverly, Commander, MD Starfleet Medical, On Attachment to VSA_

_From: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain USS Enterprise_

_I’ll fire Pulaski today._

_Xx_

Beverly laughed.  She sincerely hoped he wouldn’t seriously just fire Kate Pulaski, but she knew there had been a personality clash between Jean-Luc and her, as well as the Doctor’s refusal to acknowledge Data as anything other than a machine. 

It had only been two months since she had seen her husband the last time the _Enterprise_  had been pressed into ferrying the Admiral to Vulcan.  Beverly secretly thought the only reason the Admiral was using the _Enterprise_ was so she and Jean-Luc would see each other occasionally, but she couldn’t ask the Admiral.  Whatever the reason, she was grateful the _Enterprise_ would be back in two weeks.  She composed a report containing her findings and sent it to Skussi.  Hopefully, he would be satisfied and release her from her attachment to the VSA.

###

Jean-Luc ran a hand over his bald head as he looked at the Doctor standing in front of his desk. 

“Doctor Pulaski, I think it is fair to say that your time here with us has been quite rocky.”

Kate Pulaski stood at attention. “No Sir, I wouldn’t say that.”

“Doctor, I’m sorry, but it simply isn’t a very good fit.  I’m afraid we’re going to have to let you go.  Of course, I’m happy to make sure there is a recommendation in your file before you leave....”

“So your wife can resume her duties?”

“As you know, my wife is currently on special assignment with Starfleet Medical.”

“Pish posh. You want her back on your ship.”

“That is neither here nor there. My point is, you are not a good fit with this crew, and I will not subject my crew to the discourse any further.  We will be orbiting Earth in two weeks to pick up Admiral Skussi.  I suggest you be ready to depart by then.  For now, Doctors Hill and Selar will man Sickbay.”

“Yes, Sir.  I plan on filing an official complaint with Starfleet over this.”

“Be my guest.  Dismissed.”

###

_To: Picard, Beverly, Commander, MD Starfleet Medical on attachment to VSA_

_From: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain USS Enterprise_

_Doctor Picard,_

_It is extreme delight I wish to offer you back your former position of Chief Medical Officer aboard the USS Enterprise.  I understand you are currently on a special assignment for Starfleet Medical, and  I am willing to hold your position until you are available to fill it._

_Captain Picard_

###

_To: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain USS Enterprise_

_From: Picard, Beverly, Commander, MD, Starfleet Medical on attachment to VSA_

_Captain Picard,_

_I accept. I will keep you abreast of when I will be able to join the crew._

_Dr Picard_

###

 _Well, I guess he really_ did _fire Kate._  Beverly smiled and returned to her correspondence.

_To: Picard, Beverly, Commander, MD, Starfleet Medical on attachment to VSO_

_From: Skussi, Admiral_

_Dr Picard,_

_After reviewing your report, I can only come to the conclusion that this is the best course of action possible for my planet and I thank you for devoting your time to this matter.  I release you from your attachment to the VSA ahead of schedule.  I am sure the_ Enterprise _will be happy to pick you up in two weeks when they bring me.  I will debrief you at that point._

_Admiral Skussi_

###

_To: Picard, Jean-Luc, Captain, USS Enterprise_

_From: Picard, Beverly, Commander, MD, Chief Medical Officer Uss Enterprise, Starfleet Medical on attachment to VSA_

_I’ve been released from my attachment!  I just need to be debriefed  by Skussi and then I’m able to return to the Enterprise.  I miss you, my love._

_Xx_

###

Beverly entered her office on board the _Enterprise_ and let out a sigh.  Kate had rearranged everything during her short nine-month stint as CMO and it was going to take her at least a month to get everything back the way she wanted them.  She took a seat behind her desk and started doing what every new CMO should do on receiving a new assignment – she was going through the medical schedule for the crew to see what needed to be scheduled.  Usually, it was simple things like reminding people when they needed to come in to have their birth control implant updated, or if an artificial knee needed a new screw, and in some rare instances, a total replacement of an artificial joint.  Beverly ran through the list and her eyes were drawn to an entry highlighted in red and she nearly fell off her chair.

_Picard, Jean-Luc.  Replace faulty parthenogenetic device. OVERDUE_

Beverly checked the original date.  Doctor Pulaski should have scheduled this replacement over six months ago and hadn’t...and with a faulty heart, Jean-Luc was in serious danger.  Of course, Beverly could perform the surgery herself, but she wasn’t sure if her husband would want her to.  It was a good thing they were currently still orbiting Vulcan.  Beverly tapped her comm badge.

“Sickbay to Captain Picard.”

“Picard here.”

“Captain, I need you to come and see me right away.”

“On my way, Doctor.”  Jean-Luc grinned.  It really was good to hear his wife’s voice over the comm system. 

He popped his head around the corner of Beverly’s office door and smiled. “Hello, Beverly.”

“Jean-Luc. Please...have a seat.”

“Is everything alright? Are you ok? Is Wesley ok?”

Beverly nodded.  “I’m fine. Wes is fine....you however, are not.”

“Me?”

Beverly turned her monitor around so Jean-Luc could see it and reached for his hand.  “Your heart.  Doctor Pulaski should have scheduled a replacement six months ago and she didn’t.  Were you made aware that a replacement was required?” 

Jean-Luc shook his head. “No, I didn’t even know it was faulty.  Am I....I mean, I feel fine, Beverly.”

“We have two options.  I can do the surgery here or I can contact the VSA and you can have it done down on Vulcan.”  Jean-Luc pursed his lips. Frankly, he would rather not have it done at all, but if it was a matter of life or death, he’d rather live. 

“Beverly...what are my odds?”

“Well, if you don’t get it replaced...we don’t know when it will fail, but it will catastrophically fail, and depending on where you are when it happens, I can’t guarantee if we would be able to save you.” Beverly’s voice wavered. She didn’t want to think about the possibility of her husband dying.

“And if I go through with it?”

“Very low.  Two point four percent.”  She squeezed his hand. 

“And when does this need to happen?”

“As soon as possible.  Jean-Luc, I don’t like this anymore than you, but Doctor Pulaski has left you in a very precarious position.  I will be filing a report against her with Starfleet Medical. Because no matter how much you and her may have clashed, she had a responsibility to your health.  And she could have informed you and made the arrangements to have this done on a starbase, or even here on Vulcan.  But now we’re left with no options.  It has to be done.  So, do you want me to do it or do you want it done down on Vulcan?”

Jean-Luc patted her hand. “You know I trust you, Beverly.  All right.  Let’s get this done.  Just let me let Will know first.”

“Of course.” Jean-Luc rose from the chair and leaned across the desk to give Beverly a passionate kiss before leaving.  “I’ll be back in a few hours?  I just want to make sure there’s nothing pressing I need to deal with first.”  Beverly nodded and watched as he left.  She rested her head on her hands. _Damn you Kate Pulaski._

When Jean-Luc returned to sickbay, Beverly had everything set up and ready for the surgery.  She passed Jean-Luc a set of standard Sickbay pyjamas bottoms and he wiggled his eyebrows at her as he changed in front of her.  Beverly changed into her red surgery scrubs and gave her husband one last kiss before nodding to Nurse Ogawa to administer the antithetic.  Jean-Luc’s last view was of Beverly’s eyes and the last words he heard was her “I love you” before he succumbed to sleep. 

Beverly set aside the fact that she was performing this emergency surgery on her husband and viewed him as just another patient.  The surgery was over within a few hours, and she made sure she was smiling as Jean-Luc came to.  She leaned down and placed a chaste kiss on his lips.

“Surgery was a success.  You can leave in a few hours, but I think you had better take it easy today and tomorrow.  I’ll come see you in recovery in a few.”

“I love you, Beverly. “

“I love you, too.”  She nodded at the orderly to wheel Jean-Luc out and if it hadn’t been for Alyssa’s hand on her arm leading her to a chair in the corner, Beverly felt sure she would have collapsed.  She pulled the hood off her head and finally allowed the tears to fall.  Alyssa bent down in front of her and handed her a glass of water.  “Thank you, Alyssa. I don’t know what I would have done without you.  Damn that Kate Pulaski.  Jean-Luc could have died.”

“But you did it, Doctor Cr...Picard.  Sorry. I’m still getting used to your new name!”

“Me too, Alyssa.”

“And If I haven’t said it already, congratulations on your marriage to the Captain!”

“Thank you.  And thank you for assisting me.  I told the Captain we could trust you.”

“Of course, Doctor.  Doctor, do you need more time or can I start to clean up in here?”

“By all means, Alyssa, please.”  Beverly rose from her chair and tugged off the surgical scrubs.  She threw them into the reclimator and shook out her hair.  “I really need a shower, but I had better go see Jean-Luc first.”

Jean-Luc was being entertained by his step-son when Beverly came into the room.  “Dad, you should have been there.  Reggie was trying to impress Magda and he fell right over and slid all the way down the mountain!”

Jean-Luc smiled at the boy. Over the nine months that they had been living together, Jean-Luc had come to enjoy when Wesley would tell him about his day or his friends.  It was surprisingly nice to listen.  Jean-Luc looked up as Beverly entered the room and smiled at his wife.  “Am I interrupting anything?”

“No, not at all my love. Wes was just telling me about his trip to ski on the holodeck with some of his friends.”

“You let our son go skiing? Jean-Luc!  He could have  broken a leg!”

“The safeties were on.”  Beverly rolled her eyes. 

“Uhh..I’ll see you later Mom, Dad.”  Wesley backed out of the room before his mom decided he wasn’t allowed to ski again. 

Jean-Luc reached out for Beverly’s hand and brought it to his lips. “Thank you, my love. I’m...I’m sorry you were put in this situation, but I admire the way you handled it.”

“Trust me, Jean-Luc. It wasn’t easy.  I had to look at you not as my husband, but as a patient.  How do you feel?”

“Fine...better than fine...do I really need to stay in here?”

“Well, I suppose I could release you to quarters...under supervision....”

“Oh?  And will you be the one supervising?”

“I might be.”


	9. Chapter 9

_To: Starfleet Medical Board of Inquiry_

_From: Picard, Beverly, MD , Commander, Chief Medical Officer USS Enterprise_

_To Whom it May Concern:_

_I am writing this letter as an official protest and complaint against Doctor Katherine Pulaski, MD, former CMO USS Enterprise.  Doctor Pulaski is no doubt a fine doctor as given to Admiral Skussi’s appointment of her to become CMO when I was dispatched on a special project.  However, it appears she allows her personal feelings to get in the way of performing her duties as CMO. Either that, or she is simply incompetent, however I find that hard to believe._

_One of the primary roles of the Chief Medical Officer of a starship is to look after the crew. Namely, the CMO is the official doctor for the senior bridge staff, and is the personal physician assigned to the ship’s captain.  When you first receive an assignment onboard a ship, it is your duty as CMO to check the schedule at least one year in advance for any routine appointments that need to be scheduled.  Updating birth control implants, tightening screws on replacement joints....and maintaining artificial organs of the crew to ensure not only continual smooth command of the ship, but also continual health of the crew in general._

_Doctor Pulaski has failed in this.  When I resumed my position as Chief Medical Officer, I immediately called up the schedule and was shocked and appalled to discover that not only was Captain Jean-Luc Picard due a parthenogenetic replacement, but this replacement was due over six months ago.  Now, as you are aware, the longer you wait to replace a pulmonary device, the further deteriorated the original replacement could be.  In addition to the state of the original device, you also have to take into account the health of the individual with the faulty device and given the Captain’s job, I think it is safe to assume he is in a high stress environment and his replacement should have been scheduled as soon as the system flagged it.  If Doctor Pulaski did not feel up to the task, the Enterprise could have taken Captain Picard to any starbase or planet with a medical facility.  Instead I was left on my first day back on board with the responsibility of performing immediate surgery on the ship’s captain for fear of his health deteriorating._

_Please note that my relationship to Captain Picard has no bearing on my complaint._

_Doctor Pulaski also encouraged a crewmember who became pregnant as the result of an assault by an alien life form to keep the baby, even when the foetus began to develop rapidly and when it was unknown if the alien possessed a threat to the mother or ship.  Of course, I am talking about Councillor Deanna Troi.  Doctor Pulaski failed to take into consideration the opinions on the rest of the crew – including those of Commander William Riker and Captain Picard, her immediate commanding officers. As a result of this pregnancy and birth, it is unlikely that Troi will be able to have any children of her own in the future._

_Doctor Pulaski offered to perform a highly risky surgery on blind crewman  Lieutenant Commander Geordi LaForge.  LaForge has been using a VISOR since he was a small child, and while the VISOR does not give him perfect sight and can be cumbersome, the VISOR allows him to carry out his duties as Chief Engineer.  The surgery Doctor Pulaski suggested is one that I myself researched extensively for LaForge, however due to the small chance it would have provided to restore his sight, not to mention the extreme pain he would have been in, I determined it was not worth mentioning to LaForge.  Pulaski however, offered him the surgery and then tried to bully him into it._

_There have been several other complaints that Captain Picard received and he has informed me he has entered them into her record.  She was very belligerent towards young female crewmembers who wanted to update or receive new birth control implants, telling them they should “abstain or accept the consequences”, leaving Doctors Selar and Hill to perform the installations while Doctor Pulaski was off-duty._

_I fear one of the reasons Doctor Pulaski did not perform Captain Picard’s surgery was due to her apparent dislike for modern technology and artificial life forms, as evidenced by her treatment of android crewmember, Lieutenant Commander Data._

_Doctor Pulaski should not be in charge of another ship or base’s sickbay, and I recommend she be sent for some refresher courses, particularly on dealing with her patients._

_Beverly Picard, MD_

###

_To: Picard, Beverly, MD, Commander, Chief Medical Officer USS Enterprise_

_From: Starfleet Medical Board of Inquiry_

_Doctor Picard,_

_Thank you for your message regarding Doctor Katherine Pulaski.  Rest assured, we will be looking into this matter._

###

Beverly woke up in her husband’s arms that morning and smiled.  This time, she wouldn’t be leaving.  She rolled over and kissed his cheek. “Good morning, love.”  Jean-Luc’s grip tightened around her. “Mm, it is indeed a good morning.”  Jean-Luc shifted and groaned.  Beverly immediately went into doctor mode.

“Are you still feeling discomfort from the surgery?”

“A little.  My chest feels sore.”  Beverly reached up and rubbed over where she had made the incision the day before.  “It feels alright...but your heart rate is rising....”

“Beverly, I don’t think that has anything to do with the surgery.” He slid his arms down her back and pulled her on top of him.  “No, I don’t suppose it does.”  She leaned down to kiss him.  “I suppose....if we take it slow...and gentle...”  Jean-Luc tugged her nightgown off over the top of her head. “Well, if my doctor approves...”

“Oh, she does.” Beverly was tugging down Jean-Luc’s pyjamas when the doorchime for their bedroom went off.  She groaned and rolled off of her husband, sat up, and tugged the blanket up to her armpits.  “Enter.”

Wesley entered his parent’s room and blushed. “Sorry, Mom. Sorry, Dad. “ Jean-Luc smiled and pulled himself up into a sitting position.  He still enjoyed it when Wesley called him Dad.  “It’s alright, Wes.  What did you need?”

“I just wanted to know if it was alright if I went skiing on the holodeck with Anders, Reggie, and Magda?”

“Have you completed all your school work?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“You’re not scheduled for bridge duty today.  If it’s alright with your mother, you may.”

Wesley looked expectantly at his mother. It was going to take time to get used to her being back.  “Yes, of course.”

“Thanks Mom, thanks Dad. See you later!”

Wesley exited and Beverly turned towards Jean-Luc.  “You’re doing pretty well at this fatherhood thing.”

“He’s a really good kid.”  Jean-Luc leaned over and kissed Beverly.  “Now, where were we?”

“Jean-Luc?  Have you thought more about us having a baby?”  Jean-Luc turned to look at Beverly and reached for her hand. “I have, my love.”

“And?”  He gave her hand a squeeze.

“I want whatever you want, my love.  I still think I would love for us to have a little girl with your hair and eyes...”

“We could have a boy, you know.”

“Hmm.  If we have a boy, I hope doesn’t inherit my hair.”  Beverly laughed. 

“My implant expires in three years.  Why don’t we let it expire and I won’t renew it?”

“I think that is an excellent idea.”  Jean-Luc pulled her into a kiss to finish what they started before Wesley interrupted.

###

Later, over a late breakfast, the couple discussed their day.  Beverly was adamant Jean-Luc take it easy, but Jean-Luc, naturally, insisted he was fine to resume his duties. Beverly knew better than to press the issue, and relented as long as Jean-Luc utilised his Ready Room and took frequent breaks.  Beverly would be busy in Sickbay, but agreed to meet Jean-Luc for dinner in Ten Forward.  She was still sifting through some of the notes left behind by Doctor Pulaski and the tasks she had chosen not to perform simply because of how she felt.  Of course, there were many times when a procedure challenged Beverly’s own personal feelings, but in the end, the most important thing to her was the safety of her patients.   Why Doctor Pulaski had a problem with this was beyond her. 

Beverly had performed her fifth birth control implant refresher and sighed.  Even with Doctors Selar and Hill around, many members of the crew had been unable to update their implants. Beverly made a note to check to see how many pregnant crew members and civilians the ship currently had and decided her decision to wait a few years had been a good one.

She checked the clock on the wall.  Only 1600. She sighed and reviewed the next set of notes left behind.

###

Admiral Skussi was once again on board the _Enterprise_ and Jean-Luc had gone to meet him in Transporter Room Three.  “Ah, Captain, I am surprised you and Doctor Picard have not left for a honeymoon.”

“Yes, well, with Beverly just now returning to her duties we felt it prudent to remain on board.”

“Hmm. I understand Gregory has offered you the use of his cabin on Betazed?”

“Yes....” Admiral Skussi studied Jean-Luc. 

“Betazed is a very short trip from Vulcan by shuttle.”

“Indeed it is, Admiral.”

“Then it’s settled. You and your wife will be departing for Betazed before we break orbit.”

“Er....of course, Sir.”

Jean-Luc grinned as he turned away to head towards sickbay to let Beverly know that they had just been ordered to go on a honeymoon by the Admiral. 

###

Jean-Luc stood on the bridge of the Captain’s yacht. “Hmm, you know, I haven’t yet had much use for the _Calypso_.”  He wrapped an arm around Beverly and gave her a kiss.  “Perhaps, we will get some use out of the old girl.”

“I hope you’re referring to the ship and not your wife,” Beverly admonished.

“Of course, my love. I wouldn’t dream of calling you old.”

“Hmmm.  I understand there is a rather nice bedroom on board?”

“Indeed.  Perhaps as nice as the one aboard the _Enterprise_.”

“I’ll be in the bedroom.  You’ll join me?”

“As soon as we disconnect and I can engage auto-pilot.”

“Although,” Beverly said, eyeing the Captain’s chair, “I always fantasised about making love to you in your chair.”

“Oh?”

“Mmm.  And since we’ll be alone....” Beverly reached for the zip on her uniform and slowly lowered it. 

“I love you, Beverly.”

###FIN###

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I waited until I had this finished to post here...do you prefer I post as I write chapters or waiting unitl it's completely finished if it's multi chapter?


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